The Run

Long years ago when I went to Vidalia as their new pastor, I was into running.  One of the guys in the church who was an avid and dedicated runner talked me into taking a run after my first Sunday night service.  I would run many times with Matt over the next ten years, but that night was the most memorable.  We set out in the darkness running on streets that I did not know.  The distance turned into too long a run for me with a guy who was pushing the pace to measure the runner preacher who was with him.  It was a long and painful run.  I did not know where I was and I was sure I was not going to get back to some place that looked familiar.

 

It is an old memory, but one that models what it is like to walk with Jesus.  When we go with Jesus, He becomes the Pacesetter.  He is the One in charge and all He expects of us is to go along with Him.  Sometimes the run on which He takes us can be long and painful.  We might even find ourselves wishing we had not said "Yes" to going.  The one thing which is certain if we are listening is the sound of feet hitting the ground beside us.  When He calls us to go with Him as He did those first disciples, He does not leave us, but faithfully stays alongside of us for the whole of the run.

When this old guy looks back to see that teenage boy who said "Yes" to Jesus, I see a boy who had no idea of what was ahead.   At the time it seemed clear what life would become, but the further I have gone with Jesus, the clearer it has become that much of the run is taken in the darkness in unfamiliar territory.  More and more I have come to understand that is our faith in Him who is steadfast and faithful which keeps us locked in beside Him.