Raise Your Ebenezer!
Published on November 5th, 2011 by Linda Wisdom
I enjoy many of the praise and worship songs that are sung in churches today, but I have to be honest and say that I really miss the hymns. That’s the music hardwired into me as a child; the hymns will always be the tunes and words that speak to my heart the most. It’s amazing with everything else I’m beginning to forget that I can still sing those old familiar songs without looking at the words. Some hymns, however, have undergone a bit of modernizing and that always catches me off guard. “Come, Thou Fount of Every Blessing” is a case in point. Verse 2 of the version I learned had us all raising our Ebenezers. Many song books today refer to something about a glad commemoration and that just doesn’t work for me.
So what is an Ebenezer and why are we raising it? Good question. An Ebenezer is a memorial established in remembrance of what God has done. In Hebrew the word means “Stone of Help.” The prophet Samuel raised a marker-stone to remind the Israelites of God’s miraculous intervention in their lives (I Samuel 7:12) by placing a rock of remembrance where people would see it. Samuel knew they would be reminded of God’s faithfulness and forgiveness whenever they passed by it. He also knew people have short memories and a visual reminder was a good thing. The hymn writer states it this way, “Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I’m come….” An Ebenezer is also personal. Reminders of God’s help in our lives are equally important for us today.
A lot of people keep a prayer journal. I tried that and now have an odd assortment of tattered notebooks filled mostly with blank pages and good intentions. Other reminders of God’s love and help come through the use of visual reminders found in some churches: stained glass windows, a cross, the open Bible on the sanctuary table. Communion is another way to remember. In fact, Jesus said “Do this in remembrance of me.” And we are approaching the advent season with its many reminders of how God sent his only Son to live among us and eventually take our punishment on the cross. An Ebenezer can be just about anything that prompts us to consider the presence of God and His help in our lives. At the “Stone of Help,” the Israelites could stand beside their Ebenezer and be reminded that they served a living and faithful God, a God who’s mercies are new every morning.
I guess “glad commemoration” works, but the old-fashioned words are just different enough to catch and hold my attention. This Thanksgiving I want to raise my Ebenezer because hither by His help I’ve come. I want to affirm with the Psalmist that “the Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble, and those who know Thy name will put their trust in Thee; for Thou, O Lord, hast not forsaken those who seek Thee” (Psalm 9:9-10). Instead of thanking Him for all that He has given me this past year, I also want to praise Him for His help and presence in my life—who He is and what He’s done, not just what He’s given. May our Thanksgiving this year be more than just a time of dinner with the family or sports on television. May it be a time of offering praise and thanks to God who is our “fount of blessing.”
Set aside time to raise your Ebenezer!
