Challenge #2 - Remember God's Power

It is important to have a right heart before God. Sometimes, when we go through trials, we forget that God is all-powerful and all-knowing. We may start to forget how God has moved in our lives. We may start relying on our own strength and power. We want control. We want the power of God without a relationship with God.

One antidote to this is to remember how God has moved in your past. Was there ever a time when you reached the end of your strength or knowledge? Was there a time when you crossed over into the realm of “I’ve got nowhere else to go,” and then God moved in a miraculous way? God might have revealed an important truth to your heart in a special way. He could have sent someone to encourage you. He could have changed your circumstances or given you the resources to make it through. When God moves like this, be sure to remember it.

The challenge for this week is to take intentional steps in keeping a record of how God has moved in your life. Similar to how the Israelites gathered twelve stones as they crossed the Jordan (Joshua 3-4), journal about the times in your life when God moved in a powerful way. Then consider selecting objects to display in your home that remind you of how God moved. These could be stones displayed on a shelf, paintings displayed on your wall, or some other meaningful objects. You could also create a playlist with each song representing a time God provided. Whatever these mementos are, they will help you remember God moving in your past. Each object will serve as a testimony to God’s power. They will help you focus on his deliverance instead of your own strength. If God delivered you in the past, he can deliver you again. Remember that he is all-powerful and loves you.

Here are some useful links to blog posts. Some offer practical tips, and others offer biblical insight into the idea of remembrance.

What Are Your Stones of Remembrance? | Gail Burton Purath

➡️ https://biblelovenotes.blogspot.com/2011/08/what-are-your-stones-of-remembrance.html

In this post, Gail offers some very practical tips and ideas for crating your own stones of remembrance.

Blow Up Some of Your Memorial Stones |  Andrew Lisi from The Gospel Coalition

➡️ https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/blow-up-some-of-your-memorial-stones/

In this post from The Gospel Coalition, Andrew Lisi challenges us to have a good attitude and heart when remembering our past. Instead of placing stones in the wrong places and focusing on our hurt, we should remember how God moved. He should be our focus, not our own bitterness.

Memorial Stones | Bailey Gillespie and She Reads Truth

➡️ https://shereadstruth.com/memorial-stones/

In this excerpt from the Joshua reading plan, Bailey Gillespie gives a quick and helpful overview of Joshua 4:1-24, along with some helpful Bible references.

What is the significance of the stones of remembrance in Joshua 4:9? | gotquestions.org

➡️ https://www.gotquestions.org/stones-of-remembrance.html 

In this deeper dive, the authors from Got Questions Ministries explain the significance of the twelve stones in Joshua 4:9 and how this fits into the greater narrative of the nation of Israel and the Bible as a whole.