Submitted by Kaylyn Garwood
After the Lord freed His people from slavery in Egypt, the Israelites roamed the desert for 40 years, awaiting the Promised Land. When it was finally time for them to enter, they were given specific instructions for how to cross the Jordan River. In a way intentionally reminiscent of the crossing of the Red Sea, the Lord cut off the waters of the Jordan, and His people crossed on dry ground.
When the people had crossed, the Lord commanded Joshua to have one man from each tribe return to the middle of the Jordan, pick up a stone, and carry it on their shoulder from the center of the river bed to the shore. Joshua set up a memorial of the 12 stones. He told the Israelites that when their children asked them, “What do these stones mean to you?” they were to tell the story of the Lord’s providence and remind them that this is “so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the LORD is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever” (Joshua 4:24 ESV).
Did you catch that last part? The Israelites set up a physical memorial to remind themselves of God’s faithfulness and that they are to fear Him.
My parents took this model from Joshua 3-4 to heart and specifically used the Thanksgiving holiday to do it. The Chase Family Thankful Bucket is our “memorial” of God’s faithfulness. This yellow, plastic Tupperware bowl with a crack in the lid and a faded pumpkin sticker on the top is an unmatched treasure.
Every year, when the family gathers, we write something we’re thankful for, date it, and share it. But it’s not just about what God has done this year—The Thankful Bucket is filled with slips of paper from almost three decades! These pieces of paper carry everything from hilarious family memories and inside jokes to the births of grandchildren and trials that God redeemed. All of these stories are memorials of God’s character.
We do not serve a God that changes. Hebrews 13:8 (ESV) says, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.” The God that parted the waters of the Jordan River is the same God we serve today. He is constant. His character is set. He can be trusted.
How sweet to be reminded of this truth each year when we open the Thankful Bucket. God was faithful when I was eight, and our family was stranded in North Carolina with no way to get home other than renting a U-Haul, loading our pop-up camper into the back, towing our van behind, and crowding into the front cab. (Yes, that’s a true story!) God was faithful when, after years of praying for my grandfather’s salvation, he gave his life to Christ a week before he died of lung cancer. God was faithful when my dad was a lineman and was amid an electrical flash and walked away unharmed.
God was faithful. God is faithful. God always will be faithful.
How often do you remind yourself, your spouse, and your children of this? I was convicted of this a few years ago. We loved joining in on my parents’ tradition of the Thankful Bucket, but what physical reminders did WE have in place to teach and pass on to our own children?
Thus, entered The Garwood Family Thankful Jar, which has become a precious treasure to us and our children. It’s amazing how forgetful we can be when we’re distracted by the trials of life. I’m so thankful for the reminder in Matthew 6 that we do not need to worry about what we will eat, drink, or what we will wear. Our Heavenly Father provides for us.
So this Thanksgiving, rather than simply talking about the things we’re thankful for, try writing it down. Start a bucket, a jar, or a notebook to remind yourself of God’s character and His involvement and care in your everyday life. Taking the time to start a tradition like this can be a memorial of God’s faithfulness for generations to come. And when asked, “What does this mean to you?” you have the perfect opportunity to recount God’s faithfulness.
Set up the stones.
Come and see what God has done:
he is awesome in his deeds toward the children of man.
Psalm 66:5 (ESV)