“Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name of it Eben-ezer, saying, Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” (1 Samuel 7:12). Samuel and the Israelites were so filled with gratitude for the Lord's help that they raised a great stone as a monument to remember how merciful the Lord had been to them that day. How often do we take the time to memorialize the help that the Lord gives to us? How different might our relationship with the Lord be if we took the time to remember Him not just in our moments of crisis but also when things have calmed down and we have the time to appreciate the help that He gave to us to get through that crisis? If we had the time and the energy and the space, our homes could be filled with monuments to all of the times that the Lord has helped us. Even if it is not always practical to raise up a physical, tangible object to remember the Lord's help, we can take the time to record these precious moments of grace. Remembering the Lord's help can enable us to maintain a spirit of humility and gratitude, give us the hope and strength to face new challenges, and make us less resistant to calling on Him again and again for His divine aid. Moroni shows us that remembering all of the Lord's help can open doors for us that we might not have expected. “Behold, I would exhort you that when ye shall read these things, if it be wisdom in God that ye should read them, that ye would remember how merciful the Lord hath been unto the children of men, from the creation of Adam even down until the time that ye shall receive these things, and ponder it in your hearts. And when ye shall receive these things, I would exhort you that ye would ask God, the Eternal Father, in the name of Christ, if these things are not true; and if ye shall ask with a sincere heart, with real intent, having faith in Christ, he will manifest the truth of it unto you, by the power of the Holy Ghost. And by the power of the Holy Ghost ye may know the truth of all things.” (Moroni 10:3-5). I hope that we will look often at our stones of Eben-ezer and remember how merciful the Lord has been to us and especially remember specific instances of His help and how those moments of help have made all the difference in our lives.
