Being afraid to face the future is normal, especially after going through difficult challenges of the past year. We are afraid how much more difficult the challenges in this current year will be. I shared with my best friend about my fears and she answered me with just one word; Ebenezer. That encouraged and strengthened me to set forth on the new year.
What is Ebenezer? It is the name of a stone set up between Mizpah and Shen by Samuel to remember what the almighty God had done for the Israelites: God had helped the Israelites defeat the Philistines. The name Ebenezer means “Thus far the Lord has helped us” (I Sam. 7:12b). The situation was dire. The Philistines had gathered to attack the Israelites. Samuel cried out to the Lord on Israel’s behalf, and the Lord answered him. The Lord thundered with loud thunder against the Philistines and threw them into such a panic that they were routed before the Israelites. The Israelites pursued them, slaughtering them along the way. So, every time the Israelites and their descendants saw the stone Ebenezer, they were reminded that their victory over the Philistines was not because of their might but that of God. God, who helped them in the past, would also help them in the present and future. God was their Rock of salvation.
Does that not apply to us as well? We could go through 2024 not because of our ability but it was because of God’s grace. He enabled us to go through 2024 along with all its difficult challenges. We managed to win many tough ‘battles’, but it was God’s almighty power that gave us these victories. This is the basis for our hope in 2025; God will help and protect us and fight the ‘battles’ for us just like he did in the past year. We will be able to emerge from 2025 safe and well. When the time comes, we will be able to close 2025, saying, “Ebenezer; Thus far the Lord has helped us.”
Let us continue our life journey with hope and confidence, as God will see us through.