And it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed over the Jordan, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying: “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from every tribe, and command them, saying, ‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodge tonight.’
Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; and Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’…21″When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, ‘What are these stones?’
22 then you shall let your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land’; 23 for the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over,
24 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”
I have felt a calling to write a story about God's faithfulness in the midst of grieving, after suffering the loss of our foster son, Josiah, who was a part of our family for almost 2 years.
In each installment of the story, Jesus and I go for walks together with the purpose of stacking stones near a river bank. Each stone represents a person, incident, or lesson that God has brought into my life to teach me more about Himself.
I don't know how it will end. But I know what it will look like in the end; our stone monument will be beautiful. And it will testify of His goodness, mercy, grace, and compassion in the midst of sorrow.
I hope you will be blessed reading it as much as I have been writing it. And I hope it encourages you to stack your own stones that testify of God's faithfulness in your life, and that you will want to share your story so that "all the people of the earth may know the hand of the Lord, that He is mighty."
Part 1: The Foundation
Part 2: Walking Ahead
Part 3: Preparing a Place
