Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, ‘This is the way; walk in it.’ Isaiah 30:21
Do you like to walk? No exercise equipment, video workout, or workout center, in my way of thinking, comes close to a great outdoor walk. The scent of pine, fresh-mown grass, flowers, the warmth of the sunshine, the cool of the breeze—these you can’t duplicate at the gym or … plopped down in your recliner in front of the TV. Obviously, some people may rather go to a gym, because of the advantages not available in a walk. My hats off to you! Or others may not be physically able to walk, and your activities are curtailed accordingly. Since, however, God has given me the strength and desire to walk, I would be negligent to forego such a delightful exercise.
I have recently returned to my walking program after a few months of neglect. Now, improvements in my attitude, motivation, and physical wellbeing are obvious to me. I have a distance goal and attempt to maintain a steady pace and reasonable time for the walk. At eighty-nine, I no longer have the strength to walk 5-K in forty-seven minutes, but I have a purpose and a destination. The up-hill trek can make me a mite breathless, but the level ground or down-grades make up for the effort.
There are always distractions along the pathway: I may meet someone who wants to chat; I stop to admire or pet a neighbor’s dog; my cell phone rings; raindrops interfere; I trip over uneven sidewalks or rocks and roots on a pathway; I may see something along the way I want to check out, like a flower or a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis; a rock in my shoe. As I walked one day last week, it was the latter which distracted me. I was sure I had somehow trapped a boulder from Grandfather Mountain in my shoe. I had to stop my pace, lean up against a tree and take off my shoe. I peered into my shoe and I was surprised not to find a boulder at all! In fact, I didn’t even find a stone. My boulder turned out to be just a tiny speck of grit, but it felt huge when I walked on it!
Grandfather Mountain, North Carolina
As Christian believers, we are on a pathway heavenward. And, yes, we get all sorts of distractions, even the proverbial grit in our shoes on the way. I think of John Bunyan’s allegory, The Pilgrim’s Progress, a wonderful picture of our journey to our eternal home. (If you have never read the book, make this marvelous seventeenth century book your next “good read.”) Pilgrim ran into many obstacles on his journal to the “Celestial City.” We do, as well. We become distracted when we are pulled away from focusing on our relationship with God. These distractions hinder our spiritual growth and maturity. We can be in church every time the doors are open, but if we allow ourselves to get grit in our spiritual walking shoes, we can get sore feet that could get infected, get too discouraged to walk, or lose ground on our upward journey. Such distractions include both outside influences and personal notions or habits. Anything that shifts our attention from time communing with God can serve as a rock in our spiritual sneakers.
We can get distracted by many things in our daily life, such as family issues, work, finances, or even personal needs. Prioritizing helps, but what about the spiritual distractions? Here are some common spiritual distractions, or as the Apostle John calls them “Things of the world,” that are contrary to any intimacy with the Lord.
Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life—is not from the Father but is from the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever. 1 John 2: 15-17
- Materialism:
We focus on what we have or what we want. John calls this “desires of the eyes.” These may even be good things in and of themselves, but such pursuits lead to worry over responsibilities, wealth, or possessions and sidetrack our spiritual journey. When we focus on what we have, what we want, or what we can’t have, we leave behind what we do have in Christ Jesus—our status as a child of the King of kings and all the privileges of the King’s son or daughter.
- Self-gratification:
Pursuit of what makes us “feel good” such as physical pleasures, may lead us to idolatry—anything we love more than we love God. This may include technology overload, relationships, hobbies, foods, or any number of entities destined to usurp our time and our thoughts, yet they do not last or satisfy. We lose touch with the all-satisfying relationship with the Lord of Glory.
- Preeminence:
There is absolutely nothing wrong with doing a good job, getting an education to improve yourself and do what God has called you to accomplish in your life, and striving for excellence. When pursuit of achievement means to feel better about ourselves or to achieve “top dog” status in our circle of influence, we need to take a closer look at our walk with the Lord. This may include busyness, overcommitment, or constant activity. This leaves little time for intimacy with the Lord and can lead to self-doubt and cloud our spiritual clarity or confidence in God’s purpose for our walk with Him.
We are on a journey. Yes, there will always be distractions along the way, but we don’t have to yield to them. Such things as breaks for nourishment and rest are great. When we get grit in our spiritual “shoe,” we need to stop and remove the annoyance. We need to ask the Lord to show us how and where to walk and then commit to walking in step with Him and in the same direction.
What is God’s purpose in our journey?
He wants us to prosper, not primarily on the mundane level, but to strive for spiritual prosperity. He wants us to understand that every step we take has a divine purpose.
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Jeremiah 29: 11
He wants us to trust Him and not ourselves for each step along the way.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.
Proverbs 3: 5-6
He wants us to have the assurance of His constant presence and strength.
Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
Isaiah 41:10
He wants us to grow in faith.
And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1: 6
He wants us to walk for His purposes.
For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Ephesians 2: 10
[ii]When I’m walking and come within sight of home, I am reminded of Pilgrim as he neared his goal, the celestial city. The walk was strenuous, but the destination is worth the effort. I look forward to taking off my walking shoes and sinking my feet into the carpet. I long for that drink of cold water. When our journey is complete and we gain the “celestial city,” the reward will far exceed the efforts and gains this side of heaven.
Challenge:
Let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and
perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
Hebrews 12: 1-2
Prayer:
Lord, forgive me when I allow distractions to impede my journey to “The Celestial City.” Help me, as I walk along the pathway, to lay aside the weights that pull me away from the goal. Let me, with the Apostle Paul, say:
But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3: 13-14 (NIV)
Promise:
Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” Hebrews 13: 5
Scriptures taken from English Standard Version (ESV) unless otherwise indicated
[i] https://www.stavislost.com/images/photos/2020/5f0e21faba918.jpg
[ii] AI creation
