Over the years I’ve heard of people who celebrate their spiritual birthdays—the day they became a Christian. I’ve always thought it was the neatest thing, that ability to look back on a specific day and say, “This was it. This was when everything changed for me.”
I can’t do that though. I mean, I know I was in junior high and at Camp Wesley Pines for a fall youth retreat, but I have no idea what the actual date was. I get that it’s not a deal breaker in terms of my salvation, but it would be nice to know. It would even be nice to celebrate every once in a while.
And I wish I’d written it down. I wish I’d documented it in some way.
In the Bible we see that Joshua was a man who understood the importance of marking God’s faithfulness. In Joshua 4 he set up twelve stones from the Jordan River at Gilgal. The stones were to remind the people of Israel that God dried up the Jordan so they could cross into the Promised Land. Joshua stacked the stones “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the Lord’s hand is mighty, and so that you may always fear the Lord your God” (v. 24).
And you know what? I don’t think we’ll ever regret following Joshua’s lead.
I’m not saying that we need to all gather a bunch of actual stones and then, you know, actually stack them. But how about making note of significant dates and spiritual milestones in your Bible? Or keeping a journal that chronicles the Lord’s faithfulness in your life? Or creating a timeline of pivotal moments in your life and faith? (I actually did the timeline several years ago as part of a Bible study, and it’s such a treasure to me.)
Make no mistake: God is good and merciful and just and faithful whether we chronicle our experiences with Him or not. He is no less holy if we don’t take time to jot down reminders of His power. But when we document what He has done and what He’s currently doing in our lives, we are writing down our story with Him. We are creating a record that will not only encourage us when we re-read it, but it might also encourage a child or grandchild one day. Your handwritten memorial stones might be what the Lord uses to enable a future family member to see that, as Joshua said, “the Lord’s hand is mighty” (Joshua 4:24).
Even if your journals stay under lock and key for the rest of time, they’ll minister to you when you’re going through something difficult or when you just want to sit down and praise the Lord for His kindness in your life. Several years ago, I was waiting on the Lord to answer a specific prayer, and I saw in my Bible where I’d marked a passage that had confirmed a decision and comforted me a few months earlier. In that moment I was reminded that He had answered me before and would answer me again (and sure enough, He did).
We need not ever forget how good God is to us. Write it down so you’ll always remember.
1. Do you remember when you became a Christian? Write down that story. (And if you aren’t a believer, then write down the story of how you decided to explore the possibility of living life with Jesus.)
2. Do you have a favorite Bible verse or verses? Jot down the references here—and then grab a highlighter and mark them in your Bible if you haven’t already.
3. Do you ever think about the legacy of faith you hope to leave your children and grandchildren? How could writing down your personal memorial stones contribute to that legacy?
4. If you were to set up memorial stones for the five most significant events in your life so far—times when the Lord has guided you and kept you going—what would those be? (If you can’t narrow the list down to five, write as many as you’d like.)
Today’s Prayer