rock of comfort

So…Jon and Emily’s big day, which we have anticipated and planned for, has come and gone. It was a beautiful time of thanksgiving and reunion…an eclectic mixture of Emily and Jon’s family and friends…of their pasts…and of their future.

As I was watching the ceremony, that took place at the altar of our church, I thought about how many special times of our lives have happened at that very place. It was there that Loyd and I exchanged our vows, thirty-two years ago . When Amy and Emily were newborns, we dedicated their lives there; and almost a year ago, we celebrated Kathy’s life at the very same place. And now…it’s almost as if we have come full-circle… Jon and Emily have dedicated themselves to each other at the same altar.

During the wedding, the congregation sang an old hymn of the church, “Come Thou Fount.” In one verse, there is a reference to raising an “Ebenezer.” We were having a family discussion about what an Ebenezer is, and I had to “google” it…It seems that, in the Old Testament, to Samuel and the Israelites, the Ebenezer was an actual stone that was erected to be a testament to the fact that God keeps his promises… that” his mercies are everlasting; his covenant is forever.” The Ebenezer stone was a visual reminder, to God’s people, of God’s comfort to them. An Ebenezer is literally “a stone of comfort.” Wow! The altar in our church is just that to me…a symbol of the comfort of God…a reminder that I can give the situations of my life to God, and he will take care of them….

Thank you, God, for you comfort…thank you for the reminder,

g
PS Kathy’s presence was felt this weekend. She was with us.