Raising an Ebenezer: Remembering God’s Help

As I began praying about what truth I could share with you, I kept hearing the echo of a line from the hymn, Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing. It was the line that says: “Here I raise my Ebenezer. Hither by Thy help I’m come.”

I used to think that was the strangest line. Every time we sang it when I was little, I’d wonder what in the world an Ebenezer was.

I have to admit that as an English major who fell in love with the writings of Charles Dickens at an early age, one of the first answers I originally thought of was his infamous Ebenezer Scrooge, who you most likely know is a miserly businessman who was visited by the ghosts of Christmas.

Of course, I knew the hymn wasn’t referring to that character. In fact, a gentleman named Robert Robinson penned the hymn in 1758, nearly a full century before Dickens brought Scrooge to life on the page.

So, what then is this Ebenezer?

Thank goodness we now have the internet to find answers to such questions. My quick search pointed me directly to Scripture, specifically the book of 1 Samuel, chapter 7.

This book covers the last of the period of time when Israel was governed by a series of judges. They fit into the historical biblical timeline after Joshua who had succeeded Moses and before Saul was crowned Israel’s first king. Samuel was the last of the judges to lead Israel and would in 1 Samuel, chapter 8, anoint Saul as king. But in this chapter, Samuel is the one leading the people and calling them to return to the Lord, promising that if they repent (turning from the wrong things they had done) that God would deliver them from their enemies, the Philistines.

The people did repent, and God did deliver them, providing a great victory at a place called Mizpah. After the victory was won, Samuel took a stone and set it up and called it Ebenezer because, verse 12 tells us, “Till now the Lord has helped us.”

When Samuel set up his stone named Ebenezer, he was building a tangible monument to remind the people of the Lord’s help.

I think that’s a great reason to sing about raising our own Ebenezers and to pause and focus on this idea. I am a planner. More often than not my overachieving heart is ready to dream new dreams and chart a plan for the future. All of that can be good, but before I hurry along my planning way, I need to pause and raise my own Ebenezer through these words.

I want to testify of the Lord’s goodness to me in the past year and all of my half-century-plus before that. You see, I believe it’s important to stop and look back on our journey. My goal isn’t self pity or self praise. It isn’t to wallow in hurt or heartache, to brag, or to replay past happenings. Instead, I come testifying that all that has come before is because of the Lord’s help.

Waking up this morning with a beating heart and breath in my lungs? The Lord provided that.

Having the ability to write these words and tell you how great God is? That’s Him, too.

This year He has opened incredible doors for me — to speak to women who want to seek after God with their whole hearts, to walk through a difficult season with a dear friend, to stand on foreign soil and tell a hurting woman how very much her Heavenly Father loves her. He’s provided beauty in sunrises and sunsets, the smiles of our new great-nephew, and in the privilege of worshiping God along with other believers. He’s given us a good year with family even as we’ve navigated the loss of loved ones and the challenges of aging. And He’s given new mercies every morning, and He has lavished us with grace, mercy and love that go beyond any measure we can begin to imagine. He has walked with us through dark, difficult days and carried me when I wasn’t sure I could go on at all.

Till now the Lord has helped us.

And in Hebrews 13:8 we read that Jesus is the same yesterday, today and forever. So, because He has helped me before, I can be confident that He will help me going forward into the future…actually straight through this world’s future and into time without end.

What about you?

As you think back on the past 12 months — whether you’re listening in these early days of 2026 or a decade in the future — how have you seen God’s help in your life?

Thank Him for the blessings you’ve received and for His presence in times of trouble. And then prayerfully consider what stone of remembrance you can set up today to remind yourself of His goodness and to be a testimony to others. Maybe yours won’t be in the form of a blog post or podcast episode — but it could be a painting, an act of service to help others, or even an actual stone that reminds you every time you see it that God’s help is carrying you through.

Heavenly Father,

Thank you for the example of Samuel as he set up the Ebenezer stone to remind the Israelites of your goodness. Today, I build this post in that same spirit — reminding myself of your goodness, sharing that testimony with others, and praising You for Your goodness to me.

Lord, help me keep my eyes fixed on You as I move forward from this moment. And I pray that for my friends who are reading or hearing this as well. Help us find our hope in You for all the days ahead.

We love you, Lord.

In Jesus’ name we pray.

Amen.