When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Choose twelve men from among the people, one from each tribe, and tell them to take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the priests are standing… So Joshua said to them, each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”

Joshua 4:1-7

Tell Your Story!

This week, Pam and I are celebrating 21 years of marriage.  Number twenty-one isn’t one of the biggies, but we have a few things planned- dinner at Bertucci’s and maybe a movie afterwards.  With a family of six it takes quite a bit of pre-coordination to create enough space for us to get away without totally disrupting the family schedule.  Fortunately, our kids are cooperative and pretty supportive of dad and mom getting out for a date every now and then.  Josh has lifeguard training all week so Amanda will make dinner and babysit her younger siblings.  

Maybe it’s our anniversary or the upcoming end of the school year, but I’ve noticed that Pam and I have been telling a lot of stories about our childhood recently- growing up, going to school, dating and early adulthood.  The whole family, particularly our nine year-olds take particular pleasure in hearing about my childhood.  They laugh hysterically at the stupid stuff I did.  I imagine that sometimes they have a difficult time imagining me being anything other than a middle aged pastor.  And Josh and Amanda are old enough to appreciate Pam and my stories of being high school sweethearts. 

 One of the things that I’ve noticed is that there is a large knowledge gap between our teens, Josh and Amanda and our nine year olds, Justin and Katelyn.  The older ones have heard many of the stories before while the younger children have yet to be told.  I sometimes forget which stories I’ve told to the children and assume that the younger ones know them, when they don’t. 

It’s important to tell and retell our story so our children know who we are- even when it involves silly, embarrassing or even difficult parts.  It gives children a sense that they are part of a bigger story, that mom and dad understand what they are going through and that life is larger than what they are currently experiencing. 

This is especially true spiritually.  In this passage of Scripture (above), God gave specific instructions for the nation of Israel to set up memorials so that succeeding generations would know the story of God’s redemption and their part in it as God’s chosen people.  These memorials were visual reminders designed to cultivate conversations about God and His faithfulness.  These conversations were essential so that the faith could be passed on and experienced by the next generation.    

And so it is for us.  Have you told your story of God’s faithfulness to someone recently?  Your children, family, friends or even a co-worker?  Have they heard of how God has worked in your life, answered a prayer or rescued you?  Hearing someone else’s story helps others recognize that God has been at work in their life too.  It’s never too soon or too often to share a story about what God has done for you!  Tell a story today!