I remember historical moments during my life. When JFK was shot I was in my second grade classroom. When Neil Armstrong first stepped on the moon, it was the summer before 9th grade and I, like so many others, set my alarm to get up in the middle of the night and watch it in my living room. The challenger disaster happened just before I was to teach an afternoon class, and I witnessed the 9/11 attack from my office when I was a school counselor. I also remember personal historical moments. These include everything from learning to read and swim to getting my first bike, my first broken bone, and my first car to going on my first date and attending my first funeral.
I remember historical changes that have happened over the course of my life. I remember going to my grandparent's house to see what a color television was all about instead of the more affordable black and white we had at home. As a mischievous child, I enjoyed listening in on party lines at my great aunt and uncle's home...private lines had not yet come out to the "country." I remember when my dad came home with his first calculator versus the old adding machine he previously used. I remember waiting until I was advanced enough in math to unlock the mystery of the slide rule, only to be introduced to a hand held calculator instead. I remember the students down the hall using punch cards...and I remember when desk top computers replaced that whole system. My son's college class assignments opened up the era of the "world wide web" and my oldest daughter taught me the fine art of instant messaging after her first semester of college. And I learned to Skype when my other daughter lived in South Korea.
Remembering historical spiritual markers, however, are far more important because they are eternal. I remember being presented with my first Bible in church; I was so proud to have my own Bible in its nice new box. And I kept it perfectly preserved in that box on a shelf for years. It wasn't until a decade later at a different church that I was encouraged to bring my Bible to with me every week, follow along, and read it for myself. I remember watching babies being baptized in church when I was growing up, but later making the decision to go forward to acknowledge my faith in Jesus and be baptized as an adult which was far more life changing. I remember the prayers of the minister and others as a part of the church service or church gatherings, but the first time I summoned the courage to pray aloud in a group setting was a life changer for me. Other spiritual "mile markers" include when I first personally "heard" from God and the first time God "spoke to me" with a "picture".
Altars are an example of spiritual markers in the Bible. I was first introduced to the concept of altars when a friend gave me a copy of Hinds' Feet on High Places by Hannah Hurnard for my 30th birthday, a mere three decades ago. The main character, Much-Afraid, was on a journey to higher ground, away from her painful past and was led by her companions, Sorrow and Suffering. The Chief Shepherd who appeared every time she called on him guided her through the challenges along the path. As she traveled, she built altars at places where she surrendered control to the shepherd. In the Bible altars were built by Noah, Moses, Joshua, David, many others. Perhaps most notable is the altar Abraham built to sacrifice his son, Isaac, before the sacrificial lamb was provided by God.
Earlier this year our church did a series called, "Altars" (from which I borrowed the faith picture for this month). The description from the website reads, "Everyone of us can point to turning point moments in our lives where we had an experience and a choice that propelled our lives forward into greater good and success. In the Bible, turning points are often captured in stories that include altar experiences. An altar experience is where we encounter God. Altars are also where we make choices to respond to God and solidify the love, promise and wisdom of that encounter with God in a way than can change our future for the good."
It will come as no surprise to those of you who regularly read my blog that many of my altar moments are attached to songs that I listened to at a particular time--songs that got me through a rough time, songs attached to a time of growth and drawing near to God, or songs that God used to give me a better understanding of Him or the work He was doing in my life or the life of someone close to me. Today I am praying the song "Break Every Chain" by Tasha Cobbs for a couple of situations. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pD2zIuiC2g )
My encouragement to you this month is to take a few moments to remember God's faithfulness in your life. Pull out an old hymn or worship song and reminisce with God about one of your altar experiences; a time when you felt His presence through a joyful or a difficult time. Perhaps, too, a song will come to mind to use as a prayer for yourself or someone else as it did for me today.