Lying in the hospital bed. My legs immovable & tingling from the pain medication. An oxygen mask placed over my face. Epinephrine placed in my IV line to increase my heart rate. Listening to the heartbeat of my yet-to-be-born child slow each time I contracted.
Helpless. Fearful. Praying.
I asked the nurses what I could do. The answer was “nothing.”
I was left with my fears and my projections. I attempted to take my thoughts captive. I reached out to friends via text for prayer.
To turn my heart to hope and away from fear…I thanked God for how He had provided in the past. I thanked Him for giving us this child when 10 months ago I was having endocrine problems & thought pregnancy was impossible. I thanked Him for the jobs he provided when we did not know what we would do next. I thanked Him for bringing friendships each time we moved to a new city. I remembered each child he has safely delivered…each of my healthy, happy, handsome boys.
“Be pleased to save me, LORD;
come quickly, LORD, to help me.” Psalm 40:13
A year ago a friend’s son survived a scary ordeal in the NICU, fighting for his life against RSV. To commemorate God’s faithfulness and deliverance in that situation they placed a large stone in their backyard. She called it their “ebenezer”.
What is an “ebenezer”?
The word “Ebenezer” comes from Hebrew and is actually two words pronounced together: Even Haazer…the Hebrew word for “help” (Ezer) and putting it together with the Hebrew word for “stone” (Even) to create: “Ebenezer.”
Literally speaking, an Ebenezer is a “stone of help,” or a reminder of God’s Real, Holy Presence and Divine aid.
When challenges arise, when tragedies strike, when fear presses in…we need to pick up our ebenezers…our “stones of help” and raise them up. His help in the past reminds us that He is capable to help us in the present trial.
As I lie there in a hospital bed incapable of safely delivering my son in my own ability. I replayed His past faithfulness to give me hope that He would faithfully deliver this child. No matter what damage was done to get that child out…He would be faithful even in that.
I was blessed that Knox David was born perfectly healthy. I did not suffer any physical ‘damage”…a recovery easier than any of my previous children.
I will “raise my ebenezer” because He was my help when I was helpless.
I will share of His faithfulness to everyone so that He will be glorified. We can praise Him together.
“I have told the glad news of deliverance
in the great congregation;
behold, I have not restrained my lips,
as you know, O Lord.
I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart;
I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation;
I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness
from the great congregation.” Psalm 40:9-10
What is your story of His faithfulness? Do you keep record of His past provision (an ebenezer journal)? Will you share here in the comments so we can praise Him together?
Linking up with:
I could write my own blog post about God’s faithfulness in bringing us through Clark’s residency – provision of a house to rent for next to nothing thanks to my dad, keeping us in Dallas b/c He knew that I would get pregnant again, surrounding us with our friends, family, and church throughout, and on and on… To Him be all glory, and honor, and power, forever…
so true! i love the idea of an ebenezer journal. a place to go to and write down these stories. So when we are discouraged or at a difficult decision we can remember He is a big God and nothing is too difficult for Him! thanks friend for being a prayer warrior on knox’s delivery day!
Praise God for his faithfulness! In a way, little Knox himself is an Ebeneezer…a living reminder of God’s faithfulness.
yes!! I was tempted to have a pic of me holding knox up in my hand…just like the pic with the stone. I completely agree. He is a reminder of God’s faithfulness. Also love that the story of the Ebenezer is in 1 Samuel…since our name David comes from the story of Samuel anointing David as king.
Heather, your post brought tears to my eyes just thinking about how faithful God has been over the years. My sweet 8-year-old boy is my reminder everyday. Being ventilator dependent, tube fed and in a wheelchair, we never know how long God has for Evan in this life so we are thankful for every day. Even if the worst happens, we still know that God is faithful no matter what. Thank you for sharing your story of God’s faithfulness and for giving others the chance to do the same!
love you friend! happy belated bday! thought you and knox might share the same day…that thought warmed my heart as you hold such a special place in my life. Thank you for sharing your story of faithfulness. I know that each day you walk in reminders. God bless!
Congratulations, and what a wonderful blessing for God to deliver Knox safely. I had a similar experience with my son – his heart rate also dropped every time I contracted. Through some rotating and a lot of patience the doctors were able to help me deliver him without a C-section, and I was so so grateful.
It’s so awesome that you remember to praise God for his faithfulness during this time. I love the idea of an Ebenezer rock – if only we would each add an Ebenezer rock to our yards for all the times God is faithful and comes to our aid, each of our yards would be full! But sadly a lot of times I think we fail to notice that He was there.
Needless to say, I love the idea of a concrete reminder of God’s goodness to us, and when we look in our backyard at that BIG rock, we thank God for saving our little boy! Great is His faithfulness. ALso, when on a walk around the neighborhood, Lulu and Dana jean point out other ebenezers and we talk about all we have to be thankful for! great post, and congrats on the new precious boy.
thanks laura! If i had had enough forethought (hadn’t just had a baby)…I would have had you send me the pic of your family with the “big rock”. I just love the ebenezer idea. So thankful for God delivering you from your trial and how you held onto hope knowing you would place that rock in your backyard. love you friend!
I am so blessed by this post! Thanks very much for sharing. My ebeneezer is the cap from my epi-pen. After dozens of severe life-threatening allergic reactions as part of an autoimmune disease, I have become more familiar than I’d like with the process of injecting myself with epinephrine. The gray safety cap is the last piece you remove before administering it, making it an official “this is serious” moment. I have one of those safety caps on the bulletin board in my studio, labeled with John 20:26: “Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you.'” It reminds me that I don’t have to know the answers or what will happen today, only trust that God’s mercy and hope are ever-present, and his ways and timing perfect. Praising our Savior who can enter through locked doors and bring peace!
Your posts are so uplifting! Congrats on your beautiful, healthy boy! We have seen God’s faithfulness in bringing us through a trying time of infertility and blessing us with 2 miracle babies. It was a very dark time, but God always met us in those struggles and we grew in our understanding of Him and in our marriage. We are still amazed and daily blessed knowing the odds we surpassed in having our beautiful kids.
A wonderful testimony of God’s grace! This reminds me of Psalm 63:5-7: “My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness; and my mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips: When I remember thee upon my bed, and meditate on thee in the night watches. Because thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of thy wings will I rejoice.” It’s a great boost to faith, a great testimony of God’s glory, and a great encouragement to others to trust Him when we recount His works in our life.