Ebenezer: A Cairn of Thankfulness

Ebenezer Koppie at Phillipskop is a low mound, part way up the mountain, where we are building a Cairn of Thankfulness. We invite you to join us! Why not take a walk up to Ebenezer Koppie, and find a stone or rock lying somewhere on the hillside nearby, and add it to our cairn – whilst saying thank you for one of the good things in your life. You could do this as a family activity, as a couple, on your own, or as part of a simple open-air service with the group you came with.

The name Ebenezer comes from the Bible. In Biblical times, people sometimes set up stones to commemorate blessings, to help them remember what God had done for them, and to say thank you. In the book of 1 Samuel (which you can find in the Old Testament part of the Bible) there is an account of a time when God rescued his people after a period of struggle, and in response Samuel took a stone and set it up. He named it Ebenezer, saying, “Thus far has the Lord helped us.” (1 Samuel 7v12)

Ebenezer Koppie is on the first part of the Panorama Path, just 1km from the chalets. Set off up the Saddle Trail, and follow this route until you reach the Gateposts – a pair of standing stones either side of the path. Just past the Gateposts the Saddle Trail turns to the right, and you want to take a left turn along the path leading down into the valley. Cross a small stream, and then follow the path which climbs up the ridge. A short detour from this path takes you to Ebenezer Koppie. This peaceful spot offers beautiful panoramic views, and we invite you to take time to pause and reflect here.

You can return via the same route, or continue on up the ridge where the path bears around to the right and crosses the Saddle Trail. Turn right to return via the Saddle Trail, or continue straight across to enjoy the rest of our Panorama Path.

Count your blessings, name them one-by-one,
And it will surprise you how much the Lord has done.

♦ Some people are always grumbling because roses have thorns; I am thankful that thorns have roses. Alphonse Karr

♦ We often take for granted the very things that most deserve our gratitude. Cynthia Ozick

♦ It isn’t what you have in your pocket that makes you thankful, but what you have in your heart. Author Unknown

♦ I think we delight to praise what we enjoy because the praise not merely expresses but completes the enjoyment; it is its appointed consummation. C.S. Lewis

♦ Gratitude can transform common days into thanksgivings, turn routine jobs into joy, and change ordinary opportunities into blessings. William Arthur Ward

♦ Appreciation can make a day, even change a life. Your willingness to put it into words is all that is necessary. Margaret Cousins

♦ While I may not always feel joy, God asks me to give thanks in all things because He knows that the feeling of joy begins in the action of thanksgiving. Ann Voskamp

♦ Gratitude bestows reverence, allowing us to encounter everyday epiphanies, those transcendent moments of awe that change forever how we experience life and the world. Sarah Ban Breathnach

♦ Every time you feel in God’s creatures something pleasing and attractive, do not let your attention be arrested by them alone, but, passing them by, transfer your thought to God and say: “O my God, if Thy creations are so full of beauty, delight and joy, how infinitely more full of beauty, delight and joy art Thou Thyself, Creator of all!” Nicodemus the Hagiorite

♦ Be joyful always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. St. Paul (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18)