Safely to Arrive at Home

Here I raise my Ebenezer; Here by Thy great help I've come; And I hope, by Thy good pleasure, Safely to arrive at home.

This puzzling line from the old hymn "Come, O Fount of Every Blessing" today expresses the overwhelming emotion in my soul.

Today I was reminded of one of the most difficult times of my life. My heart is full of those days' desperation and deepest pain. At the same time, I am overwhelmed to remember those days as the most pivotal in my relationship with God. Every time I doubt His existence, it is that experience that keeps my complete disbelief at bay. Because of those most desperate days, I know He is real. And I cannot let go because He did not let go.

"Here I raise my Ebenezer" is a reference to 1 Samuel 7 where Samuel the prophet prayed that God would protect the Israelites from the Philistines' impending attack. When God answered his prayer, Samuel raised a stone in memory of God's help. Today I raise my stone in memory of God's showing up in my life. Of His grace. Of His refusal to let me go.

And I hope, by his good pleasure, "safely to arrive at home."

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I have come to realize recently that I need to do more writing. This means, beloved and dedicated blog followers, that you should be seeing more of me soon. I may, however, switch over to Word Press. Though blogger has been good to me, I vastly prefer the format of Word Press. I'll keep you posted.