Reflect

Joshua 4:6
So that this will be a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’

I must confess, pessimism and negativity come easy for me. Since I was a young boy, I’ve been able to walk into any situation and point out what’s wrong. This is often a bad outlook, but this weakness is also a strength at times. One of my best characteristics as a leader is the ability to find weak spots and correct them. However, this principle that makes me effective as a leader also does some damage in my marriage and parenting. Are you like this? Do you like to self-predict a negative outcome and then subconsciously fight to fulfill your prediction?
 
God wants us to view the future with optimism. Not optimism that it will always work out just right, but optimism that He is the one guiding the narrative regardless of the circumstances. In order to rest in confidence about what God will do in the future, we need to reflect on what He’s done in the past. In the verse above, God commands Joshua to take stones from the Jordan River to remind the Israelites of what God has done. This reminder of God’s past faithfulness will help them trust in what He will do in the future. The stones remind them that the same God who took them across the Jordan will guide them in battle. I encourage you to join me in the habit of putting spiritual markers in your life that remind you of God’s past goodness. Remember what He has done. Reflect (think deeply and carefully about) on what He has done. Don’t focus on what’s wrong. Focus on who God is. All throughout scripture God tells His people to remember who He is. The God that got you from there to here is still present. When in doubt: Remind. Remember. Reflect. After all, God is the one who will meet our past, present, and future needs.
 
Psalms 81:10
I am the Lord your God, who brought you up from the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.