Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.�? And he was afraid and said, “How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.�?
So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it.
– Genesis 28:16-18 (ESV)
The stone that Jacob used for a pillow the night before had become holy, and he set it up as a pillar of remembrance. The night before it was just a rock, like all the others. Now it was a holy, annointed, stone of remembrance.
Remembering what God has done is something we are commanded to do over and over in Scripture. The reason should be plain, if you’ve lived long enough to realize how forgetful we humans are of the blessings we’ve been given. That’s why it’s often helpful to keep and hold objects of remembrance, to remind us.
For months I’ve carried a piece of paper, shown below, that has the setlist for one of the last worship services the student worship band I used to work with ever did. This was a holy night – it was our last night at our Junior High camp and on this night the band led a private worship service for the Victory Camp staff.
It was beautiful, and I’ll never forget it. God moved that night, and the worship was pure and good. I’m helped in that remembrance by this little piece of paper. Of the thousands of pieces of paper that pass through my hands each year only a few become special, set apart, made holy by the memories of God’s work that they carry with them. This is one of them. Tonight I was thinking of the past, and of memories of past moves of God, as I pondered the fact that now that Jill and I are poised to move into a new ministry, we really are done working with students. It’s final. That is a bittersweet feeling. But it’s good to be where we believe God wants us to be.
Do you carry little “stones” of remembrance with you? Do you hold on to items that remind you of what God has done? If you do, I’d love to hear about it in the comments.
They blessed me. Here they are singing Rain Down that night
i totally do that.
in hinds feet, she did that a lot…and i read that and started doing that.
after every journey, or significant moment in life, something that meant alot to me or my relationship with God, i’d take up a rock or twig or something…
it’s awesome.
i’m glad the guys that got to do jh camp that summer were the ones that did it. i’m sorry i missed it, but i’m so stoked it blessed you so much. that’s amazing.
miss ya, mb. once i get internet in my room again, expect emails…lots of ’em.
Hinds Feet on High Places – what a book!
I remember being disappointed you couldn’t go – but you were across the ocean on mission, which was awesome! But it was truly a great camp. Would have been that much better if you could have been there.
I miss you too, and really look forward to the emails 🙂