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Joshua 4 * Ever see one of those commercials where they describe the symptoms of a particular condition and you say, “Hey, I have that!”?(or ALL of those commercials and say, “I have that too!”). I have recently diagnosed myself as having all the symptoms of “IFS”. It seems most common in the ‘male’ of the species. The unique thing about this particular condition is that the individual with the condition is less likely to be affected by its characteristics than those closest to the individual. “IFS”, of course, being the dreaded “I Forgot Syndrome”. * What one phrase (“I forgot”) could be any more useful? Any more liberating? With just (2) simple words, suddenly exonerated; released from any sense of responsibility or accountability; when innocently uttered, it tends the calm the accusing party. * Multiple times in the Bible God says, “remember,” (used 240 times in the Bible). God says that we should remember because we have a tendency to f_________?! (forget) (profound theological truth of the day!) * Remember- seems more intentional; seems to involve deliberate activity (“You remembered!!!”) * Don’t forget- forgetting seems to come naturally! It’s less intentional, it just happens. We get distracted. * We establish markers as visible and tangible reminders of easily forgotten people and events. * For centuries, people in the Middle East erected stones to honor their gods. Any traveler who saw these standing stones knew that something supernatural had happened there. * The reason being… Eastern peoples/cultures relied on story to secure historical events and ensure that they are preserved and conveyed. Every marker WAS a story waiting to be told. The marker was to… …invite an inquiry (questions), …which was to evoke a memory (recollection of a past event), …which, in turn, would prompt a story. * These markers indicate how connected we are to people in other times and others places (i.e. troop ship in Toledo). ►Without your story, it’s just a pile of rocks! To the casual observer, it’s just a rock. * “Faith-markers” identify significant God-moments in our lives when it would have been easy to miss his presence; his purpose. Not just to memorialize the supernatural, but to celebrate God’s interaction in our lives. ►Stones are not only used to celebrate life, but to honor a death (i.e. “birth stones” and “grave stones”). Usually, what God is doing anew in you (‘birthing’) includes a death. “Something of me died there” (a time when you profoundly encountered God and surrendered something or yourself …ambitions, goals, etc.) ►What’s most valuable is not the event itself, but what you take out of the event! The stones were to come “out of” the river. (When we return to those places we say that the situation “took something out of us”. What we need help remembering is what we “took out of the circumstance”). The stones were an ordinary component of the event, yet used to symbolize a deeper truth. ►What is most significant is not the event itself, but our interpretation of the event. Interesting to hear various interpretations of events (i.e. “Custer’s Last Stand’ changed to “Battle of the Little Big Horn”). How we interpret past events (circumstances) will dictate future decisions. Joshua 4:21 “In the future, …what do these stones mean?” * Could it be that… ►Our faith history was meant to help shape the destiny (course) of future generations!? You are now called upon to interpret these moments so that others find God there as well (We are not to just offer facts or read the plaque!) SUCCESSFULLY MOVING FORWARD IN LIFE REQUIRES THAT WE PERIODICALLY LOOK BACK! “In the future…” Often times, faith markers only make sense in the future. The future is where you get perspective. At the time, you’re just piling rocks; the moment is too intense for interpretation. It’s not a good time to be drawing conclusions or making major life-decisions. Returning offers fresh perspective. ►The stones can be rearranged, but never removed! Stones don’t fit neatly together; life is not as uniform as we would prefer. Events in our often seem so meaningless and random. But, they are irreversible pieces of our life story (i.e. like pictures we cut people out of). I suggest that there are a few life-markers to which we all must occasionally return: STONE OF DECISION. Defining moments which helped define the course of our lives; they remind us of our commitments. * Most of us could define our life around 4 or 5 major life-choices (i.e. education, relationships, vocations, etc.) Choices for which we have spent years suffering the consequences or reaping the benefits. It’s only as we return to those faith-markers do we realize the significance of our immediate decisions. STONE OF SUCCESS. Usually, these are monuments to our own accomplishments (i.e. trophies, ribbons, plaques, etc.) This is the stone that dominates our conversation; the one we talk most about! I’ve discovered that a successful beginning does not guarantee future success! STONE OF FAILURE. I’ve noticed that we don’t erect monuments to failures! (don’t proudly display our “Last Place” ribbons!) We don’t have a tendency to preserve for posterity those moments and activities which cast us in a negative light. The danger here is that we think “less of ourselves” than we should. This is the monument that dominates our thinking! IF SUCCESS IS WHAT WE SPEND MOST OF OUR TIME TALKING ABOUT, FAILURE IS WHAT WE SPEND MOST OF OUR TIME THINKING ABOUT! * This is the stone at which we tend to linger. We spend a great deal of time here and expend a great deal of energy here. NO ONE LIVES AT A MONUMENT! (unless you have no place else to go!) It’s simply a place that we go to remember; to reflect; to help us understand the present. CAUTION… IF THE FUTURE IS WHERE WE OFTEN LOOK FOR HOPE, THE PAST IS WHERE WE MOST OFTEN LOOK FOR EXCUSES! * Hope and Future: interesting how those 2 dynamics always come together. Hope always seems connected to something that we are not currently experiencing. * We were created to move forward (ever noticed how time just keeps on moving ahead, even if we refuse to?) It’s why God constantly pointed Israel toward the future; it was the place of hope. God wanted to remind them that their past would create future hope. STONE OF CRISIS Times that get our attention (when we are awakened to our need of change) and change us forever. These times are deeply impacting. These usually involve unexpected, unforeseen circumstances which have shaped us. STONE OF PAIN. The unsuspecting betrayal; the compromise of the relationship. These moments usually involve “people” who have wounded us and marked us as well. * We don’t speak openly about these times; when we do return, we usually want to be alone. It’s too painful; too personal. It’s usually too risky to expose others to these times for fear that they may reach different conclusions about us. 1 Samuel 7:12 Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, "Thus far has the LORD helped us." Ebenezer means “stone of help”. It was not only a reminder of God’s presence, but also the inevitability of future challenges. Communion: The bread and juice are markers; reminders. Cross: The cross is a marker. A reminder of the painful consequences of man’s determination to live without God. Empty tomb: Empty tomb is a marker in our lives. It’s this stone that celebrates “death” and “new life”! Faith-markers indicate where you have been, but need not dictate where you are going! * What we need is someone who can take all these random, ‘patternless’ events and fit them together. It seems that only God can skillfully and creatively take all these stones and create a hopeful story!
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