For 17 years I've dreamed of taking a walking trip in England. It turns out that my good friend Sara also had that dream, so for the past ten years we've talked about it, and finally planned do it this year! For me it then also served as a great break after the intense year I'd spent in a medical training program, re-gaining knowledge I'd lost on the mission field.
Unfortunately, two weeks before the trip I had a bad fall off of a horse. It was incredibly painful for me to walk even a few feet, and yet we had planned to walk 9 to 16 miles a day on our trip! I slowly improved, and just before the trip walked three miles: but it was incredibly slow and painful and I needed to ice my back afterward. Thankfully, God designed our bodies in such a wonderful way that they often are able to heal, given enough time. During the first week in England I was grateful that - although very slow - I was able to complete each day's walk.
The words above the windows of this church say, "Walk with God." I found this phrase very meaningful, as we saw this church right before starting our second week of walks. The previous days when we hiked in the Yorkshire Moors were full of the presence of God: in the varied beauty of the nature around us, in our interactions with the people we met, and in my awareness of God as a very present help in time of trouble as I struggled with both physical pain from the accident as well as with worry and distress over the healing process.
Through it all, my friend and walking companion Sara also acted as the hands and feet of Jesus as she helped carry my luggage, waited for me with patience when the pain caused me to suddenly need to rest, and acted as a comfort (either with a listening, sympathetic ear, or a joke, a worship song, or even a well-timed burst of a song from the 80s).
God walks with us all the time - may we have eyes to see.
