Then
Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen and called its name
Ebenezer; for he said, “Till now the LORD has helped us.” 1st Samuel
7:12
What, you may
be wondering, is an Ebenezer? After a
time of sinning against the LORD Israel put away their idols to serve Him only. Their perennial enemy, the Philistines, had
defeated the Jews several times in battle, and had become a force to be
reckoned with. But now the prophet
Samuel, led the Israelites out to fight.
Israel came
to the battle rattled. They had been on
the losing end of the Philistine spear before and were understandably
frightened. But when Samuel cried out to the LORD for Israel, they stood their
ground and the LORD heard him and allowed Israel to defeat their enemy.
After the
victory Samuel took a stone and called it Ebenezer, which means Stone of
Help. It was, in essence, a trophy
of victory that could only have come by the hand and help of the God of Israel.
Sometimes
when we reach a valley of decision, before the battle is joined, it seems we’re
praying through stone and not to the Rock of our Salvation. With an outlandish
chunk of ice in our stomachs, chilled by continual worry or fear, it is
difficult to trust that the LORD is already fighting for us. We might ask, “Doesn’t He know how hard and
frightening standing at this battlefront is?”
Yes, He knows exactly where we stand.
It’s not for His understanding that He knows where we
stand, but that we understand that He stands with us.
He is our
Stone of Help, a Rock that cannot be moved, yet hears our every cry. When the
smoke clears, if we do not become discouraged in our communion with Him and
prayers, we will find our victory secure (Galatians 6:9). It will become one of many Ebenezer’s we will
raise throughout our lifetimes. Trophies
of Help and Remembrance. As we raise them,
we will find every one of them to be rock solid. As solid as our Rock, Christ
Jesus (1st Corinthians 10:4).
Ken
