Stacking Stones, Standing Strong

Today we’re talking about Stacking Stones, Standing Strong.

You ever notice how we collect little things as reminders like ticket stubs, seashells, maybe even a rock from a special place? It’s our way of saying, “I want to remember this moment.” Well, in the Bible, people did that too—but their souvenirs were often stones.

Joshua and the Israelites, after crossing the Jordan River, stacked stones to remind future generations of what God had done. Those rocks weren’t fancy, but they told a story—of faith, of rescue, of a God who keeps His promises.

Psalm 18:2 says, “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.”

I love that image. God isn’t just something we remember; He’s the solid ground beneath our feet. The Rock we build on, the one that doesn’t move when everything else shakes.

So today, as you listen, think about your “stones”—the moments that remind you of God’s goodness and how, even now, He’s still that unshakable Rock in your life.

Have you ever felt like a rug was pulled out from under you?

Imagine that for a minute… like a cartoon character, if you don’t mind.

The rug gets pulled out, and that cartoon character gets thrown really high up in the air and is flailing around trying to figure out how to get its bearings.

Then sometimes when the rug is pulled, there is just a hard thud.

Life can just get us, and we can feel like it hit hard or like we are trying to get our bearings.

But God is never thrown off and is always sure—and that is the kind of rock we need in our lives.

Just like we have people we can call on when we are uncertain of things and we seek advice or guidance, God is right there, ready to give us exactly what we need.

God needs to be the one we can depend on to help us get our bearings back when life is upside down.

We have these flagstones that we have moved around the yard over the years, and we have always used them as the same things… some sort of patio or seating area.

About 10 years ago, we decided to put them in a permanent place. So of course, unlike before, we really had to get the area ready to place these, and we also decided that we needed to put some mortar around them because we weren’t going to move them again.

In that process of moving the rocks around, there was some learning that happened… we were just placing those stones before wherever we wanted them, but they would eventually become uneven as the ground settled and moved. But for the final placing, we knew what needed to be done, and so we got it all done correctly.

In life, we can do all the right things, but eventually, we can come to a point where things could have been done better or at a different time as things shift, and when we redo or adjust, we are better prepared.

That is life… we try, we adjust, we learn, we grow… and eventually, we come to understand what finally needs to be done. God is always teaching and working in our lives. He is our refuge and shield, guiding us along the way.

When we feel like we will not make it through the season we are in, we can look to the cross and remember what Jesus went through. He demonstrated to us that through grief, pain, and absolute discomfort, we can and will make it through.

Jesus told us that the life He lived is possible for us to live day after day when we draw upon the strength of the Spirit of God who lives in us.

As the song says, “Christ is our firm foundation, the rock on which we stand.”

He is a foundation that doesn’t crack or break with pressure or shifting sands… He is firm.

You know, sometimes life feels like a landslide, everything shifting at once. But when God is our Rock, we don’t lose our footing.

Psalm 18:2 (NLT) — “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.”

This scripture reminds us that He’s not only our Rock but our fortress and place of safety. I picture a child climbing into their parent’s lap during a storm—it doesn’t make the thunder stop, but it changes everything about how that child feels. That’s what it’s like when we run to God.

Maybe you’ve been in a season where you’ve been stacking stones of your own—little reminders of what you’ve survived, what God’s brought you through. Those are testimonies in the making. When you look back, you’ll see God’s fingerprints all over those moments. He was the steady one holding you when everything else was uncertain.

Uncertainty can send us into a spiral, we can question everything, and we can also feel stuck, not knowing what to do next because everything is so up in the air.

Times can be tough; we may not be able to make ends meet, or we are making it paycheck to paycheck, or doctor’s visit to doctor’s visit.

It is in the uncertainty that we can depend on God because He never wavers.

As we are feeling deeply all the things, we do need to remember that God is in control, that He is our firm foundation, and no matter what may be swarming around us, we will make it through because God is walking beside us.

Not everything turns out the way we want, but it turns out the way God planned, and that is something to hold on to… God knows what He is doing.

When I was younger, I used to collect rocks, and over the years, I have looked at that collection and weeded out some because I don’t remember where I picked them up. There are some, though, that I do remember where I got them, so I keep those.

I think about that process when thinking about my life. There are things that I have picked up, and I don’t remember how or why I started doing those things. There are some things that I have changed and weeded out, and there are some things that I remember why and where and how I picked them up, and those are usually the ones that made a big impact on my life.

So, like the rocks stacked throughout the Bible as a remembrance, I hold on to those. God was at work, and those are the ones I need to always remember so I don’t ever go back, because I can recall.

Let’s think about something simple—rocks don’t move easily. They stay. They endure.

Psalm 18:2 (NLT) — “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety.”

When Scripture calls God our Rock, it’s describing His unchanging nature. People will shift, emotions will change, plans might crumble—but God doesn’t. He’s constant. He’s steady. He’s not only the Rock we stand on but the one we can lean against when we’re tired.

And maybe it’s time to start stacking some new stones in your life—not literal ones, but spiritual reminders. A prayer journal entry, a verse written on your fridge, a conversation that encourages your faith. Every one of those is a “stone” that says, God was faithful here… and He’ll be faithful again.

As we are in a new season, I think about how unchanging God is.

Seasons do change, but God designed them to change around the same time every year, and with that, we know for the most part what is coming.

God is a steady, unchanging God, but everything around us—even His creation—changes as He tells it to.

So, things for us will constantly be changing… the same things may happen every day for the most part, but there are slight differences.

Nothing in our lives is as steady as God. Nothing in our lives is as foundational as God’s love. Nothing in our lives will ever be as never-ending as God.

God is our fortress, our savior, our rock, and protection. He shields us and gives us power through the Holy Spirit. He is our foundation for everything.

Have you seen those videos of how to get out of quicksand? They say moving around frantically can make things worse, so you have to stay calm, move your legs slowly back and forth, and try to pull yourself up by laying back because of the surface area.

Think about that… staying calm and moving intentionally and using as much surface area as possible.

When we are struggling, we can make things worse, and so applying these things here can help a lot.

Stay calm… be intentional with our thoughts and prayers so we can then have a better, clearer mind to see the area that we need to cover to make it through.

The first place to start in all of that is with God. God is the foundation that we can use to help us get up and then move forward one step at a time.

Take a moment to think about what’s holding you steady. Psalm 18:2 says, “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior.” That’s not just poetic—it’s personal.

God is your solid ground when you feel like you’re sinking. He’s the one who stays when everything else fades. And those “rocks” you’ve stacked along the way—your memories, your answered prayers, the times He’s carried you—those aren’t random moments. They’re a monument of His faithfulness.

So, as you go through your day, remember this: you’re standing on something stronger than circumstance. You’re standing on the Rock that never fails.

The stones we stack remind us of where we’ve been—but the Rock we stand on reminds us of who holds our future.