Cairns: A Sign of Faithfulness

If you’ve ever gone hiking with me, there’s a fair chance that you know about my deep love of cairns. You know, cairns, those cute little piles of rocks that are used to mark the trail?

Cairns are used on trails all over the world to signal to the hiker, “Yes, continue this way. You are still on the right path.” I’ve had many moments while climbing the Rocky Mountains in Colorado where I wonder if I have wandered off the trail, then I see the distinctive pile of rocks and am filled with assurance and comfort. Other times, I’ve started down the wrong way, and a distant cairn will orient me in the correct direction.

In my different moves and travels, I will often collect a rock to signify important events and places in my life. This tradition started when I was baptized while I was at university, and a member of the church gifted me a beautiful stone with the words, “Jesus is Jaimie’s” along with the date of my baptism. Another one of my favorite rocks is a stone from India on which I’ve written the name of the city where I lived as a reminder of the work God did in and through me during my first years living overseas. Whenever I look at these stones, I am reminded of what God has done in His infinite goodness and faithfulness.

Cairns are also present in various passages of Scripture. In Genesis 31, after many years of disagreements, Jacob makes a covenant with his Uncle Laban, and there is a particular sign of this covenant:

“So Jacob took a stone and set it up as a pillar. He said to his relatives, ‘Gather some stones.’ So they took stones and piled them in a heap, and they ate there by the heap…  Laban also said to Jacob, ‘Here is this heap, and here is this pillar I have set up between you and me. This heap is a witness, and this pillar is a witness, that I will not go past this heap to your side to harm you and that you will not go past this heap and pillar to my side to harm me.’ ”

(Genesis 31: 45-46, 51-52)

When the Lord is establishing the Israelites as His people, there are many details in Exodus as God gives Moses specific instructions about the different priestly garments that the line of Aaron, the Levites, should wear as they perform their service to the Lord. One such beautiful example is in chapter 28 when the ephod, or the linen garment like an apron, is being described:

“Engrave the names of the sons of Israel on the two stones the way a gem cutter engraves a seal. Then mount the stones in gold filigree settings and fasten them on the shoulder pieces of the ephod as memorial stones for the sons of Israel. Aaron is to bear the names on his shoulders as a memorial before the Lord.”

(Exodus 28: 11-12)

In arguably the most memorable Biblical passage about cairns, right after Joshua leads the Israelites across the Jordan River to the Promised Land after wandering in the desert for 40 years, the first thing he does is give these instructions:

“So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, and said to them, ‘Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.‘ ”

(Joshua 4: 4-7)

Finally, in one more example, the prophet Samuel responds to the Israelite’s pleas for protection against their enemy, the Philistines. After the Israelites repent and turn back to the Lord, in a demonstration of God’s power, the Lord sends a thunderstorm that is so loud that it throws the Philistines into a panic, allowing the Israelites to defeat them. In response,

“Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the Lord has helped us.’ “

(1 Samuel 7:12)

There are truly many rich lessons hidden in each story. Do you notice a pattern throughout all of these passages? In each instance, the rocks are used in different ways to remind God’s people what the Lord has done and how He has helped His people through difficult circumstances or relationships.

While living in Europe last year, I had the distinct pleasure of fulfilling a bucket list item: hiking the Dolomites in Italy with dear friends (see picture at the top as well as the formidable Tre Cime above). During what became my favorite hike in the gorgeous Dolomites, I was reveling in the beauty of the mountains as well as the various delightful piles of rocks. The majesty of this hike was only added to by the many cairns along the path. While my friends and I shared in the kind of deep conversation that only comes after hiking miles together, we reflected on how God had been working in different seasons of our lives. Then, right at the end of the hike, just as the loop trail re-connected with the parking lot, we turned a corner and stumbled upon a veritable field of cairns. I had never seen anything like it in my life! Each cairn was unique and special, and there must have been more than 1000 cairns. There are truly not words to express how much joy this sight brought me!

A few days later, as I was journaling and reflecting on this moment, the Lord reminded me of the image of the field of cairns and told me, “This doesn’t even come close to representing the immensity of My faithfulness in your life.” Truly, the faithfulness of the Lord is bigger, wider, and deeper than we can ever comprehend. However, this reminder came at a time when I was wrestling with many difficulties, so the profoundness of the statement struck me even as I questioned how the Lord was displaying that faithfulness. In times like that, just as the Israelites practiced, we must reflect on the various ways God has already displayed His faithfulness: our piles of stones, our Ebenezers, our rocks of remembrance. These reminders can also serve as trail markers on this long path of following Jesus. God has been faithful before, and He will continue to be faithful. This is a truth and a promise. Beyond that, the Psalmist reminds us:

The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer;

my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge,

my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

(Psalm 18:2)

How amazing is that? During times of trouble, joy, and everywhere in between, the LORD is our ROCK. He will hold us up when the road is rough, and He will protect and save us from our enemies. Furthermore, in the times of struggle and in the times of sweet remembrance, there is a time for everything, including

 “a time to scatter stones and a time to gather them”

(Ecclesiastes 3:5)

Is this a time for scattering stones, to throw things out that are not helpful and potentially harmful? Or a time for gathering stones, to bring together the good things and demonstrate the Lord’s faithfulness? Mercifully, the Lord, who is our unchanging solid rock, provides times for both.