Celebrating Miracles

Joshua 3-4

Joshua and the people of Israel take the time to make a standing memorial to the miracle that God has done for them.

How often do we stop and celebrate what God has done for us? How often do we share miracle stories?

What has God done in you? What has God done for us?

Arabelle’s Birthday

This past Thursday was Arabelle’s 10th birthday. Round of applause.

We celebrated her birthday on Thursday with presents, Pho for dinner, and Baskin Robbins for dessert. We take the opportunity every November 2nd to remember that we are thankful for Arabelle and the miracle that she is.

There are so few things that we do that far. So few miracles that we take the time to remember after the fact, to celebrate and to thank God for.

Even as we celebrated Arabelle’s birthday, I realized that night, that she probably doesn’t even know her own miracle story. So I asked her: “Arabelle, have I ever told you the story of your birth?”

She said “no”.

Oh man! How could I not. This is one of the greatest miracle stories of my life! And so I told them:

Anna, Arabelle’s Mom, had gone into the hospital at about 6 months pregnant for a routine check-up. The doctor said “actually, I am going to send you up to labor and delivery, you are in labor right now.”

They admitted her and had her lie down on her side. They gave her a drug to help hold off the contractions, they called me and I broke all speed limits getting to the hospital. The labor didn’t progress, but it didn’t really stop either.

So they had her lie on her side. On medication. And for six weeks, that is where we lived. I put Logan to bed at my parents’ house, drove and spent the night in the hospital with Anna and Arabelle, and got up to be home before Logan woke up every morning.

And every night I desperately prayed: “God, protect this baby girl. Don’t let her be born yet.” 6 weeks later we were close enough to full term that they let us go home and a week later she was born. Whole and healthy and beautiful.

God answered my prayer. She is a miracle child! They are all miracle children… and so I told them. They need to hear the story. How could I have waited 10 years to tell her that? New birthday tradition: she hears it every year!

Dylan asked for his story. I told him about him being on oxygen tubes for the first month… but constantly spitting up in and on the oxygen tubes. It was gross. He is a miracle too, just a bit grosser!

What Are Your Miracle Stories?

What are the stories you tell? The ones that you are eager to share with friends and family. The ones your kids have heard a hundred times. It tends to be the funny ones.

Are you telling the stories of answered prayers? Are you telling the story of God’s salvation?

The Standing Stones

Recall that the people of Israel have crossed the Jordan. God stopped the water flow even as the priest stepped out onto the water. Actually, the water heaped up 18 miles upriver, so God stopped the water hours before, but with perfect timing!

And the people crossed. In strength and courage, in faith, they stepped out and walked God’s possible road right through the impossible barrier. The Possimpible miracle. As long as the Ark of the Covenant was there, the holiest symbol of the very presence of Yahweh, the river was held back.

And when the last of the priests stepped up out of the river bed, the water whelmed back up again.

But even before they cross, God commands Joshua to prepare to celebrate the miracle. And without explanation in the middle of chapter 3, he picks out 12 men, one from each tribe. Perhaps you noticed that out of nowhere last week. We don’t find out what these men are to do until chapter 4.

Even as they are crossing the Jordan, they are going to prepare to celebrate the miracle.

4:1-10

1 When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests’ feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’ ” 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. 5 And Joshua said to them, “Pass on before the ark of the LORD your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, ‘What do those stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”

And that’s exactly what they did!

To make sure you know it is important, it is repeated almost word for word in verses 8-10. And then they actually setup the stones in 19-24.

4:19-24

19 The people came up out of the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and they encamped at Gilgal on the east border of Jericho. 20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up at Gilgal. 21 And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ 23 For the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, 24 so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”

Celebrating in the Midst

Even as they are passing over, in the midst of the miracle, they are preparing to celebrate the miracle. They are gathering the stones. They chose the twelve men before they started crossing, the men chose the stones from the middle of the miraculous crossing (and remember, they were hurrying) and they setup the monument right as they reached the other side.

History of Standing Stones

These standing stones are monuments, something to help them remember, and we see similar things the world over. We have seen these from the people of Israel before.

Jacob set up stone pillars at Bethel in order to remember his powerful dream: the ladder ascending into heaven. God reaffirmed his covenant with him.

Moses built twelve standing stones at the foot of Mount Sinai after receiving the Ten Commandments and other laws.

It appears that each man carried one stone, so this isn’t Stonehenge exactly, a somewhat more modest monument, but something that managed to last at least a couple hundred years!

It isn’t just a celebration, a testimony to what God has done: The Standing Stones are a visible testimony to God’s work… and it raises questions.

In fact the purpose of it is to raise questions in order that the story may be told. Children will pass and ask why these big stones are stacked on top of one another. And then you will answer:

21-22

21 And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 22 then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’

Three times, and each time the memorial is described, it is with this question in mind. What do these stones mean?

And it works!

To This Day

When this story is told, there is a phrase that is mentioned that is very revealing about the book of Joshua itself.

Verse 9

9 And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the covenant had stood; and they are there to this day

To this day. To what day?

Statements like this give us clues to the author. The book of Joshua isn’t being written by eyewitness reporters. It is these very later generations that are being referenced here. Some point to the prophet Samuel a couple hundred years later, some point to priests in the later temple, we don’t know, but we know it is from the later perspective of the children’s children.

Which means that they have been sharing their testimony of God’s miracle generation after generation. Faithfully telling the story of what God did on that day.

They are telling the story of God’s salvation.

“Dad, what do those standing stones mean?” Oh man. Let me tell you the story of a miracle! Let me tell you the story of God’s salvation.

You Are a Standing Stone

I had the opportunity to tell Arabelle the story of God’s salvation this week.

Telling her the story of her miracle. She is a standing stone, a testimony to God’s miraculous answer to prayer. Every time I see her, I am reminded of God’s faithfulness.

These standing stones are the first “structure” in the Promised Land. It would be another two hundred years before they graduate from standing stones and impromptu altars to stacking those stones upon one another to form a true temple.

1 Peter 2:4-5

4 As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, 5 you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.

You are a testimony of praise, a monument to God’s salvation. You are a living stone.

And you together are being built, not just into a stack, but into a spiritual house, a glorious temple. That people would see you and see us, and they would ask: “What is that there for? Why are they like that?” (In a good way).

Who loves like that? Who sacrifices like that? Who forgives like that? Who lives like that?

Who are you telling your story to? Are you standing as testimony to those who walk by? To your friends, your co-workers, to your neighbors? Are you telling the next generation your story?

Are they asking?

I so easily take for granted the joy of my salvation. I take for granted the joy of all the miracles, the little salvations, the little and big blessings. It took me 10 years to tell Arabelle that miracle story!

I am a standing stone. And inscribed on me are hundreds of accounts of God’s miracles, God’s blessings, answered prayers and grace given. And I am standing, oh by the way, because he delivered me out of the valley of sin and death. I am a standing stone, a living stone, chosen and precious.

You are a standing stone. Are you telling your story?

Get a story in mind of God answering a prayer, of God changing your life, a God speaking to you or saving you in any aspect or dimension.

Today at lunch: tell someone your story. Be a standing stone.