[The Lord said to Joshua,]
“Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
- Joshua 1:9 (NRSV)
When our son was around six years old, he would sometimes stop as we made our way home from our shop, saying, “Dad, I’m too tired to walk.” I would answer, “Then you can run a little.” That was one of those typical illogical answers that a child sometimes gets from an adult. To be honest, I said it in order to distract him. But to my surprise he restored his energy by changing pace, and he was not tired anymore.
We all can sometimes lose our energy simply because we get stuck at a certain pace. We form our lives in certain routines, doing business as usual. That’s why I admire the paralytic in this story from Mark’s Gospel. When Jesus told him to stand up and walk, he had the courage to do so. Jesus asked him not only to change pace but to do something he certainly was not used to doing.
Persevering in the faith requires us to be willing to listen to God’s voice calling us to change our routines, to do something we have not done before, and to enter areas we could never have imagined. Such a change of pace takes courage. But “the one who calls you is faithful” and will give us the grace we need to change (1 Thess. 5:24).
Prayer
Trustworthy God, help us be so still that we can hear your voice, and give us the courage to change pace, to move where you call us. Amen.
Prayer focus - Those struggling with God’s call
