Embrace Faith: Keep Going

We decided rather abruptly to drive straight through – East Texas to Atlanta, Georgia – a ten and a half hour journey. Add an hour or two for stops. Plus a time change. We were in for a long day, but we were determined.

The first several hours flew by. My husband worked in the seat next to me while I drove, listening to podcasts in my earbuds. We called out each state as we crossed its border: Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama… Would Georgia ever come into view? Undeterred, we simply kept going.

At one point I commented that our next stop was only a half mile away, and that phrase booted up an old memory for Larry. He described a 5K he had run near our boys’ old high school in Oklahoma – and how the finish line came into view as they made the final turn.

A half mile away. 

And he said it was by far the longest stretch of the race. The more his eyes focused on the finish line, the further and further away it seemed – and the more his body just wanted to quit. But, if he focused on the road, watching each foot pound its way forward, his mind and body found a way to keep going. One step at a time.

Something about that story really hit me, and I found myself pondering it off-and-on as we kept rolling toward Georgia. But, as the sun set and the ticker on our GPS told us our hotel was still three hours and forty-five minutes away, it felt as though time had slowed down – that the finish line had gotten further out. 

So I looked out the window and tried to think of anything besides the drive, yet when I peered at the GPS again, our destination remained three hours and thirty minutes out. My eyes couldn’t seem to help but darting glances at the GPS – three hours and twenty minutes, three hours and fifteen minutes. And I finally said something out loud to the effect that I wanted to quit. Get a hotel. Drive the rest of the way tomorrow.

Larry admitted he was doing the same thing, so we finally loaded Netflix on my phone and listened to the most recent Nate Bargatze show. His story-telling had us laughing, and before we knew it, we were under two hours to our destination. We’d distracted our brains long enough that we’d quit focusing on the clock so that by the time we crossed into Georgia, we knew we would make it to the finish line!

I’ve read that when we’re in a long wait or on a journey of some length – be it physical or emotional – we humans have a tendency to give up just steps before the finish line. Like Larry’s last curve of the race, our trip’s final stretch tempted us to quit. We were tired. We’d been at it for a long time. It seemed reasonable to stop. But if we had, we would have had more work ahead of us – unloading our car, only to reload it the next morning, only to unload it again at our original destination. And, the next day we were sooooo glad we’d pushed ourselves. All the extra time allowed us the freedom of seeing our house before the painters had busted out the paint cans and the fumes had become overwhelming. And, in a way only God can, He lined up a meeting of next door neighbors as we were leaving our house – a conversation that blessed us and filled us with great hope for our future. These experiences would have been missed if we’d given up too soon. Lesson learned.

However. A mere three days later, as I sat in a hotel room fighting off some upper respiratory bug and anticipating the chaos of movers delivering all our belongings into a house that is still getting painted, I once again felt daunted by what lay ahead. My fatigue told me I couldn’t put forth all the energy required to direct movers hauling furniture. And the temptation to tuck under the covers of my borrowed bed and hide seemed a much more appealing option.

After letting my body have an extended rest that day, I pulled out my Bible and let its words pour over me. And it struck me – how easy it is to give up on our faith journeys. Much like finish lines on earth, heaven and eternity feel really far away. We can’t see them. We don’t know how long we must “press on to reach the end of our race” (Philippians 3:14). Paul understood this all too common temptation for the easier path, for the shorter journey. For quitting the race.

That’s why Paul, urged onward by God toward Jesus, exhorts us to keep running and never turn back (same verse, The Message). To “keep focused on that goal” because we “want everything God has for us” (v.15). And if we get distracted or overcome with discouragement, we are meant to look to God – because He “will clear our blurred vision” and get us “on the right track” (v.16). 

God knows there will be days we don’t have much energy or even the desire to stay the course – that’s one of the reasons He had Jesus perform the miracle of feeding thousands of hungry people on a remote mountain (John 6:5-13). God wants us to understand that just as the disciples offered Jesus what little they had (five loaves and two fish), whatever we give over to Him will always be enough. In Jesus’ hands, all we offer Him multiplies. 

So, if we’re lagging in energy, we simply give what we have to Him, and He’ll multiply it in ways beyond our comprehension. If we’re lacking time, we give Him what time we have and watch Him multiply it in the most creative ways. If we’re losing faith, we stop and give Him the faith we have and witness what He does with it (Matthew 17:20)!

Friends, to embrace faith is to stay on a path that is narrow and bumpy, the road less traveled. To embrace faith is to keep going in the moments that tempt us to give up. It’s to keep choosing, over and over, the cross of Christ rather than a dead-end, easy street (Philippians 3:18 MSG).

Whatever we face, however we feel, the race laid out before us requires something of us – endurance of heart, mind, body and soul. But we don’t have to muster all that endurance within ourselves. Jesus is our way forward. So, when we’re tempted to quit, we refocus on Him rather than our circumstances (Hebrews 12:2). We give Him what we do have and discover that it’s enough to keep us going instead of giving up. 

We embrace faith because to do otherwise is to give up on the God who loves us beyond words or imagination. Embracing faith is our ever-needed response to all the challenges that will come our way in this life – and we can continually take hold of faith because we know Who runs the race beside us.

As Paul would encourage us to believe and embody – press on! Because at the end of the race, the One who loves us “will make us beautiful and whole with the same powerful skill by which He is putting everything as it should be” (v.21). 

Don’t give up! Put your eyes on Jesus and keep going, my friend! And I’ll do the same.

Father God, how easily we get off track. How tempted we are to give up or give in. So, we shift our focus back onto You and ask that You would sustain us on this journey of life and faith. Give us minds to grasp how near You are and how much You desire for us to press on toward YOU. Lord Jesus, You led the way in this world. You demonstrated to us a life lived in the presence and embrace of the Father. You showed us what it looks like to speak our feelings while still choosing to trust the Father – no matter what lies ahead. Holy Spirit, with You dwelling in us, we have the strength and power and wisdom we need to keep moving forward in faith. We ask that You would give us ears to hear your voice that speaks truth over our hearts and minds, grant us an inner resolve to remain on the path God has for us, and guide us in the ways that will equip us along this journey. Keep reminding us to embrace faith – even if it’s with exhausted arms and flailing energy. Because we know if we give You what we have, it will always be enough in your hands. In Jesus’ name we pray, amen.
(inspired by Hebrews 12:2; Philippians 3:12; Luke 22:42-44; John 14:26; John 6:5-13)

Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble offerings with no expectations.

• If you’re in the mood for some informative, inspiring podcasts, I can recommend a few episodes from That Sounds Fun by Annie F Downs — the ones that held my attention during our drive:
  • “Fighting Back on the Cultural and Spiritual Attack on Women with Lisa Bevere” — Episode 937
  • “A Little Women’s Christmas Roundtable with stars Laura Osnes, Julia Reilly, & Jesse Hutch” — Episode 939
  • “Whoa, That’s Good Wisdom with Sadie Robertson Huff” — Episode 941
• I continue to depend on the compilation of songs now dubbed our Embrace Faith playlist. When I began putting songs together in anticipation of this move, my body was already in rebellion — I think from remembering all the grief from the last move. But, I’m here to tell you — at every stage of this move, including this final push to the finish line, I find my faith bolstered each time I tune in. It’s my prayer that your faith gets a big embrace from our Father, too. XOXO
• The Abiding Life Newsletter is one way we continue the conversations about embracing faith and abiding in Christ. Its most recent edition is available on Substack.

Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but even more so be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is what aids us in our desire and ability to become more Christlike.

Rhythms that keep us in the presence of God are needed every single day. What we gained by being in God’s presence the day before needs renewing as the next day dawns. So, as my body feels the fatigue of the past few weeks in physical ways, I’m embracing faith this week by engaging with rhythms that I know will feed my soul — even if it looks like hitting the ‘play’ button on the Bible app and listening the Scripture instead of reading it with my eyeballs. So this week, let’s lean into rhythms without becoming legalistic or being too hard on ourselves. God’s grace is enough each and every day. We’ll give Him what we have and let Him multiply it!

• Finally, as a community, let us not neglect sharing God’s amazing grace with others! Share your God-stories with people around you. Share this site. Share God’s Word. Shine His light into the world!

Featured Photo by lucas Favre on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” photo by Sahand Babali on Unsplash.
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