Craig T. Owens

In 1 Samuel 7, there is a story where God defeated Israel’s enemies. After the victory, Samuel erected a stone of remembrance and said, “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” Year after year when Israelite families would journey past this monument, and children asked, “Dad, what does that big stone mean?” They could be reminded of God’s protection and provision and they could celebrate.

We setup our own stone of remembrance at church last night. We took an evening to gather together and celebrate what God did for us in 2008:

• People became followers of Jesus Christ and began their discipleship journey, others became disciple-makers.
• We offered our first Vacation Bible School, and made great relationships with the families in our neighborhood.
• Our Back 2 School party provided bags and bags of school supplies to area students.
• Light The Night was a great alternative to a dark-and-scary Halloween night.
• The Gift told the true story about the greatest gift.
• We were able to show the true meaning of CHRISTmas to some special families.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg! What a joy it is to know that “thus far has the Lord helped us.” And what anticipation energizes me as I’m already looking forward to an even bigger stone of remembrance next time!

There are so many people to thank. I won’t start naming them all here (you know who you are!) so that I don’t accidentally leave some people out. But I do want to single out my wife Betsy. She is my constant companion, my best friend, my favorite playmate, my wisest counselor, my daily encouragement, and a great pastor’s wife. I couldn’t celebrate all of these stones of remembrance without you!