It was a hard day. I needed to get out of the house. I love going to consignment shops, and it always does my heart good to walk around and look for that diamond in the rough.

This particular day, I found this framed piece. It is not a fancy piece of art, but the memories it provides are profoundly meaningful, and they strike my heartstrings in some special ways.

When my husband and I were dating, we were long-distance for a little while. We would send each other letters and cards. These black and white, with a little bit of color, cards became something we took on as ours. Almost like some people do with certain songs.

This year has been trying. It has been filled with grief and transitional change in every area of life and has put life itself at a standstill in some moments. These challenging times can bring frustration and many other feelings along with that one.

That day in the store, God gave me a gift. He provided a stone of remembrance in my marriage for me. He allowed me a moment to think back to sweet times in my marriage and reminded me of who my husband is to me. Just like Mary, I sat for a time and pondered all those things in my heart.

Then I bought it to take home so I can have a stone of remembrance here in our newly decorated bedroom.

God has been speaking to my heart about the importance of looking back and remembering. Share on X

 Now when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying,  “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe,  and command them, saying, ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firm, and carry them over with you and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.’”  So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; ⁵ and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ ⁷ then you shall say to them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”

God had just miraculously provided a way across the Jordan. If God had not provided, they would have all been dead. He wanted His people to remember His faithfulness to them. He wanted them to share with their children the testimony of His provision and care.

I don’t know about you, but God has saved me multiple times in my life. He has provided for my family and me, in ways unimaginable.

In good times, it is easy to take that all for granted.

In hard times, it is easy to feel like God is not there or He is not providing. In these moments, we need to keep that stone of remembrance on our shoulders. Share on X

The enemy of our soul wants to make us doubt God. He wants us to question Him. If we are not careful, we can forget what God has done. Just like Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God gave them everything, and yet it was the one thing they didn’t have that satan got Eve to put her eyes on. Putting her eyes on that which she didn’t have caused her to doubt God. and it led to the Fall of man.

That has been a stone of remembrance for me. Remembering the sacrifice Jesus made for me to live this life God has given me has been a stone of remembrance. There are countless times in my life when God gave me grace when I didn’t deserve it, and His mercy has been new every morning. He has provided in miraculous ways physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually.

I am reminded of those ways when I hear my husband tell me he loves me.

I am reminded of those ways when I hear my boys tell me about the things going on in their lives.

I am reminded of those ways when I hear the birds sing and when I can hear the notes on the piano.

I am reminded of His faithfulness when I am at a friend’s funeral, and I am reminded that this life is not all there is and what we do here matters.

I have had to fight not doubting and getting caught up in what I don’t have. Writing today is a step in getting back to where God wants me to be. He has more for me to do here than what I have been doing.

I am thankful for my husband and our marriage. I am thankful for those sweet pictures that remind me of earlier times. I am thankful for God’s provisions, even when I can’t see them fully. I am thankful for Jesus!

Heavenly Father, thank You for stones of remembrance. Thank you for precious memories that bring us back to sweet times and for reminders of Your faithfulness. Help us to remember, Lord. I pray that the enemy will not be able to get us to a place where we are stuck in doubt and questioning Your goodness to us. I pray for those who are struggling right now. May you bring sweet memories and reminders of who You are to them. Thank You for Your faithfulness to us. In Jesus Name, Amen!