Standing By Me

It's easy for me to work myself up into a frenzy of worry about money. I guess it must come from my single mother's constant concern over paying the bills when I was a young child. After all, it could not have been an easy task to work a split shift as a waitress at a restaurant and also support all the needs of her family alone. This week's news focused on the usual predictions of more gloom and doom for both the foreclosure market and the economy worldwide. Since we still own two houses in retirement, I started thinking once more about alternatives: Should we sell one or both at a great loss, or should we try to hang on making those payments every month in hopes that the market will eventually improve? As I was contemplating this question, I read a passage from I Samuel 7:12 which read, "Thus far the Lord has helped us."

The context of the biblical passage reminded us that stones were often used in ancient times for a variety of reasons: to cast at the enemy or to build a monument either to God or to someone who had died. I immediately remembered the popularity of small stones now sold in stores like Coldwater Creek that contain a single word like "believe," "faith," "hope," etc. While I am not a strong supporter of icons, it seems reasonable that one could place a small stone on a desk or in a prominent place to remind ourselves of God's faithfulness. I might wish the stone would say "sell" or "hold" in order to give me a sign about our dilemma. In the meantime, however, I will keep reminding myself that a stone is a great reminder of God's promise to stand by us.