by Linda Cox


A name on my prayer list caught my eye—a man for whom I had worked during my time of rebellion against God. He was a Christian who kept a Bible in his office and talked with me periodically about where my life was heading. He never judged me, and I had no doubt that he was praying for me. I now know God placed him in my life to be one more reminder of God’s love for me.


The Lord said to Joshua, “…Take twelve stones from … the Jordan … and bring them over with you … these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever.”


… Joshua set up

[the twelve stones] at Gilgal. And he said to the people of Israel, “when your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘what do these stones mean?’ then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you … as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea … for us … so that all the people of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever. Joshua 4:1-2,7, 20-24 (ESV)


According to The New Unger’s Bible Dictionary, a memorial is “that by which the memory of any person or thing is preserved.” Joshua built the stone memorial as a reminder to the Israelites and following generations of God’s faithfulness in bringing them safely across the Jordan River.


Just as there were memorial stones for the Israelites, so there are memorial stones in our lives. We pick some ourselves, such as a special photo or book, a Bible verse taped to a mirror, or a donation in memory of a loved one. And some memorial stones are placed in our lives by the Lord Himself as reminders of His love for us.


My former boss is one such memorial stone in a monument God is building in my life. Others could be protection in a car wreck, a parent praying or reading their Bible, a feeling of God’s overwhelming presence, a stranger who helps in a time of need, a veteran saluting the flag he served to keep us free.


Whatever form God’s memorial stones take in our lives, may we thank Him for them and their reminder of His love and care for us in the past and His promises to do the same in the future.



Linda Cox is a regular contributor to DivineDetour. She recently retired after twenty-five years as a district office secretary for the State of Illinois. Her first loves are studying the Bible and reading, but Linda occasionally tries her hand at writing. Her work is published in All My Bad Habits I Learned from Grandpa (Thomas Nelson), The One-Year Life Verse Devotional (Tyndale), Life Lessons from Grandparents (Write Integrity) and the Love Is a Verb devotional (Bethany House). She and her husband live on a farm with their two indoor/outdoor farm mutts.