"The wicked are overthrown, and are not: but the house of the righteous shall stand." Proverbs 12:7

"Here I’ll raise my Ebenezer, Hither by thy grace I’ve come…" After a victory in battle against the ferocious Philistines in which Israel was badly outnumbered, Samuel placed a memorial stone, calling it Ebenezer, which means “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” Our confidence in God increases in proportion with our recognition of His past provisions for us. But His provisions are not always obvious unless we really focus on them. In an attempt to build an Ebenezer this morning, I reflected first on the last two weeks in the life of our congregation. It has been a mind-numbing whirlwind of change, sadness, and heartache. Yet, here at the end of week 2, this thought nearly brought me to tears – We are still standing. Then, I reflected on the last year. If I had known what the last year would have brought, I would have quaked in fear and looked for the nearest exit. But, here we stand, not just survivors but more sanctified, more sober and focused, more aware of our sinful natures, more aware of our need for daily grace. We are also more aware of God’s exclusive ability to restore the years that the locusts have eaten. We bear scars and we are not fully recovered, but guess what? We are still standing! The house of the righteous shall stand not because the righteous hire the best contractors or use the best materials, but the house of the righteous stands because God is the foundation and is in every beam, every rafter, every shingle, continuing, supporting, and strengthening.