Let’s Go For a Walk

As I cleaned out a closet, I came across an old photo album that included pictures of me with family members and friends. I thought about all the people in my life who’ve walked with me. Mom walked next to me when I was a stumbling one-year-old. Friends from school walked beside me all the way home. My wife walked by my side down the aisle and later after a family loss.

I wanted to walk alongside our children and help them choose a safe road to travel. But as they entered their teens, guiding them became a real challenge. I didn’t always understand their emotional highs and lows or how they viewed the world.

But in Christ, we have someone who knows us through and through and yet will not judge us. He’s like a spiritual coach who knows how to evaluate our strengths and weaknesses — and even our hidden motivations.

In Luke 24:13-33, Jesus decided to walk with his disciples on the road to Emmaus. But they didn’t recognize the risen Lord. The disciples were sad and discouraged. Jesus understood their dilemma and knew what they needed. Eventually, they recognized him as more than just a stranger wanting to know what had happened.

We should never miss an opportunity to invite Christ to walk with us. He is the fount of wisdom and a guiding light when we're lost. If we strive to remember that he walks alongside us, as he did with the disciples on the road to Emmaus, we will always have the assurance that the risen Christ, who knows us so well, is constantly by our side.

Lord, help me realize that I don’t need to walk alone with my problems. You know my situation better than anyone. Please remind me that you walk alongside me when I forget to seek you out for help. Amen.

Go Deeper — What makes you forget that Jesus is always present with you by his Spirit, giving you all you need to love and obey him? What is one way you can practice his presence today?