A few years ago, I took my dog for a walk, as I did most days of the week. On that day, we went on a slightly different route than what she was used to. It’s good to change things up and do different things, and this route was not much different than usual. But we were starting from a different direction. This made her curious - and doubtful - as to what I was doing.
She sniffed the air more than usual and was drawn to different parts of the sidewalk. She was so preoccupied with the new route that she lagged behind me. Normally, she walks right next to me, step for step, and stays in sync. On this day, she was confused albeit excited. But because it was a foreign route, she acted insecure about the whole thing.
All of these were valid feelings, but they caused her to step out of sync with me. I kept telling her, “Keep up with me. Walk with me. Stay with me, girl.” I only had the best in mind for her but I knew she felt insecure. This was a brand new direction.
Yet though the walk was different than her usual, I was still in charge and knew exactly where we were going.
These are the words God gently speaks to us on our daily walk with him. “Walk with me,” He says. Even if we don’t know where we are going. “Stay with me,” he says as we struggle to stay in sync with him. I’m sure Noah doubted God’s call in his life to build a giant boat. But as the text says, in verse 22, “Noah did everything just as God commanded him.” And was rewarded with his life because of it.
God’s walks with us are no different. “Stay with Me,” He calls to us. It’s the safest place to be.
“Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked faithfully with God (Genesis 6:9, NIV).
Finch Food for Thought: We may not know the (new) route but we can still trust Him.