monuments

I'm surrounded by memorials and monuments these days. Some are larger-than-life marble statues. Others are unpretentious plaques that tell us how someone was important for doing something somewhere some time in the past. They're all reminders. They tell us where we've been, where we're going, and the price that has been paid so we may prosper in this life.

I was going to write a post about all of this, but then I came across this blog entry from Lauren Chandler (wife of Matt Chandler). It's exactly what I want to say. So why mess with it? I'll let her do the talking...

Have you ever anticipated an event, got there, experienced it, knew something monumental was stirring in you throughout it but were left with just a vague impression of all that had just transpired?

Maybe I'm the only one.

In my walk with Christ, there have been times when the Lord has whispered, savor this. In the moment, I can cognitively acknowledge its preciousness but my heart hasn't quite wrapped around it. I can tell myself, okay, one day, this is going to mean something beyond what it's meaning to me right now.

In the Old Testament, the Lord had His people, the Israelites, set up memorials to remind His people of all He had done for them. You'd think they'd just remember if it was such a big deal. But, not unlike myself, they got distracted by needs, wants and a deceitful heart that would lead them astray into trusting men instead of God. They forgot how perfectly the Lord delivered them from their enemies and provided for all the needs and wants. Since He knew them and knew that would happen, He was adamant about constructing a memorial as a physical, tangible evidence of His faithfulness.

The Lord gave me a picture: a road, not so level in some places, winding, well-beaten with monuments marking every quarter mile or so.

It was as if I heard Him say, that's the way you've come, that's the life you've lived, and the monuments are distinct evidences of My faithfulness to you...see what I've done? ...see how much I love you?