“Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” – I Samuel 7:12
If you are determined to dwell on the past, always looking in the rear view mirror and pouting about your problems, may I make a suggestion? Be selective on what you think about. Rather than focusing on the bad, choose to think about the good. The following is a great example of what I’m talking about from the late Vance Havner.
It was on this date one year ago that my wife faced serious surgery scheduled for next morning. We opened our daily devotional reading for that evening and found it headed “Ebenezer…Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” We encouraged ourselves in the Lord our God as did David of old, confident that the same grace which had brought us safe “thus far” would be sufficient from there on. The God of the Hitherto is the God of the Henceforth!
The backward look is a good look if we review the path already trod to raise our Ebenezer and sing, “Hither by Thy help I’m come.” This is the way to check with the past in order to cope with the future. The faithfulness of God will stand our inventory any time. We shall find that “there failed not ought of any good thing which the Lord had spoken…all came to pass.”
And be sure to give God credit. Don’t call it your wits or luck or fortune. Let your testimony be, “Hitherto hath the Lord helped us.” Some have reversed Ebenezer to read, “Hitherto have I helped the Lord.” “Tell how great things the Lord hath done for thee.”
Recounting the blessings of God will give us reason to rejoice. And that pleases God, and makes life more pleasing to us. The song writer said it well – “Count your many blessings. Name them one by one”. – HDS
David Stone
Lakeway Baptist Church
5801 FM 1960 E
Humble, TX. 77346
