“Don’t stop Beliving……” Any time I hear the word Journey, this song always pops into my head – not the whole song – just the hook. It’s so catchy!
When I think about all the various journeys in the Bible, I feel like the people would have been humming the same tune. Take Abraham for example: God told him to leave all his possessions behind and GO, only to go to the place He would show him. Abraham was not given the exact destination. He and his family just had to believe God would provide. Along this journey, he and Sarah were also on another journey to parenthood. Sarah longed for a baby until she reached such an elderly age, and at one point even lost all hope. But God told her, “Don’t stop believing!” This would ultimately give them Isaac. Abraham would then set out on a journey up Mount Moriah to sacrifice that one son who was promised to him, totally distraught and uncertain of what might lie ahead. Again, God told him “Don’t stop believing!”
A New Testament example would be Peter. He’s a journey all his own! At one point he is fishing with his brother, a journey to provide for his family. They were disappointed in their gatherings and were ready to give up, but Jesus appeared, again saying “Don’t stop believing! Cast your nets to the other side and be filled!”
On The Road to Emmaus, Jesus was there, in the midst of two men who loved him dearly. They had given up, they had “stopped believing.” Jesus didn’t reveal Himself at first. He so tenderly let them talk. He allowed them to share what was on their hearts and minds, to expose their disappointments in what they had believed all along to be true. Once they reached their destination, sitting down for a meal, Jesus blessed the meal and disappeared. This was a physical manifestation to encourage us to never stop believing. It is true!
There are so many different types of Journeys, Physical Journeys. Location related Journeys, Psychological Journey, Emotional Journey, Spiritual Journey, Journey towards Maturity…….the list could go on and on.
My personal family has had many journeys of parenthood, financial freedom, sabbatical, and transitional in regards to career, none of which we could have gotten through if we ever stopped believing. God had to be the center. He had to be the first! Today, I was helping my kids with a devotional and at the bottom it said “and lastly, go to the Lord in prayer.” While I understood the concept of what this particular book was trying to address, it was a teachable moment to show our boys, we go to God First! If He is the leader of our Journey and we never stop believing and following his direction, we will finish each journey with the ability to look behind us and see His guiding hands of love and protection through it all.
We want to thank Ashton Riddle for sharing this post.
Women's Ministry 