Walking with God

Hello Friends,

Happy Belated Easter! I hope you were able to have an enjoyable and memorable Easter with your family and friends as you celebrated the Resurrection of Jesus Christ (and maybe found some colorful Easter Eggs as well)! It was a joy and a blessing to see you at Church on Sunday! I’m sure many of you now are counting down the days until Summer vacation which is just a little over a month away. Easter has come and gone, and something else to celebrate will arrive very soon; but until then let’s walk with the resurrected Jesus and experience something new today.

How many of you enjoy going for walks? I do! I enjoy the fresh air, seeing God’s creation, hearing God’s creation, and simply just being outside. So, do you any of you go for walks? Let me ask you another question: Did you know Jesus walked everywhere, except when he was in a boat? He didn’t drive from town to town or take an Uber or ride the train or pedal his way throughout the region. Jesus walked. As a matter of fact, according to Ray Downing, “During the three years of Jesus’ public ministry he walked approximately 3,125 miles.” That’s a lot of miles! That’s more miles than walking from the east coast to the west coast of the United States! Can you walk that many miles?

Jesus walked to Nazareth to Jerusalem every year with his parents to celebrate the Passover Meal. He walked from village to village and town to town preaching the good news with his disciples. He walked all over the Galilean Region healing the sick, casting out demons, restoring sight to the blind, helping the deaf hear again, giving words to the mute, feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, releasing captives, blessing the poor, and telling the paralyzed to stand up and walk.

Jesus walked by wells and places of gathering to forgive sins and to eat with Pharisees, Tax Collectors, and Unbelievers. He walked throughout the land inviting people to give up everything and to “follow him.” He walked in deserts, up mountains, into deserted places, and within the peacefulness of gardens to find restoration, isolation, and hope. He walked to places that blessed him and to places that rejected him; and He walked, while carrying his cross, to his death on Calvary. Then three days later, He walked out of the tomb! Jesus even walked on water!

With every step Jesus took and every mile he walked, he did so because of you. Jesus walked so that you would be able to follow his footprints and one day continue his walk in your life. But did you know that when we walk with and for Jesus we have the chance to walk to Heaven? That’s what happened to Enoch, who walked for God.

This story comes from Genesis 5:21-25: “When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.”

Now, that’s an interesting story for a few reasons. First, did you hear how old Enoch was? He lived until he was 365 years old! That’s older than the United States of America! That’s older than automobiles, electricity, and indoor plumbing. People lived a lot longer back then, and some even longer than Enoch.

But the most interesting part is that it says that when Enoch was 365 years old, God took him away. Where do you think God took him? God took Enoch to Heaven. That’s where we all want to go when we die, right? We want to go to Heaven so that we can be with God and Jesus and all our family members who die before us. But Enoch didn’t have to die to go to Heaven. God let him skip dying and took him straight to Heaven.

Why do you think God did that for Enoch? Was Enoch tired and worn out? Were Enoch’s sandals worn out from all that walking that instead of making new sandals, God said “well done good and faithful servant?” Was Enoch too full after eating all the Easter candy? I think God let Enoch skip dying because Enoch was such good friends with God. It says that he walked with God faithfully. That’s what we all want to do, isn’t it? We want to walk with God and be friends with him.

Let’s talk about how old Enoch was again. Does anyone remember? He was 365 years old. That’s interesting not only because he lived so long, but because…How many days are in a year? There are 365 days in a year. So Enoch walking with God for 365 years is a good reminder to us to walk with God 365 days a year. If we walk with God every day, we’ll be just like Enoch. And whereas God might not let us skip dying like He did Enoch, if we walk with God and stay friends with Him, He will take us to Heaven to be with Him.

The story of Enoch is our reminder of not only of how someone who walked with God was given the best gift of all, but how, as Jesus did while on this earth, we are called to walk for God as well to keep the love of Christ alive in what we do and where we go. I think it’s time to tie our shoes and go for a walk, because that’s what Jesus would do.

Are you willing to walk for Jesus? Are you willing to enjoy life knowing that Jesus is walking with you? Are you willing to continue in the footprints of Jesus? Jesus did a lot of walking, and he walked for you.

Let us pray: Jesus, help us to walk with You every day. Help us to remember that You’re right there beside us and that we can talk with You any time. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

Your Friend, Holy Spirit!