“Enoch walked with God…” Genesis 5:24
It’s good to start well, but it is even better to continue steadfastly to the end. I read or heard this somewhere, and I remembered it. This is something God wants for us all. Walking with God goes beyond putting one foot in front of another. It implies a steady progressive relationship, and it’s a journey of a lifetime, not just in a moment. Enoch lived 365 years, so for 133,225 days (by our calendar), he walked faithfully in relationship with God along God’s path in God’s will, all his life. Even amidst the wickedness around him, Enoch remained a righteous man. God was pleased with him, so Enoch bypassed death. He was taken directly to heaven (Genesis 5). We don’t know much about Enoch, except that he was the father of Methuselah and other sons and daughters. He died before the flood and is mentioned in the Book of Faith (Hebrews 11). For someone we really don’t know much about, we can only imagine the life he lived, pleasing God in all things. I read that Enoch lived longer than any other patriarch, for he never died.
I began to wonder what it is really like to live as Enoch did, so close to God and never walking alone. Like many, I feel this world and the enemy are trying so hard to pull us into its mess and entice us with many things that may appear attractive and exciting, leading us away from God into darkness, blinded by His Light. My thoughts turned to our Great Lord and Teacher, Jesus, the Light of this world.
I thought of Jesus’s words in John 5:19, where He says He can only do what He sees the Father doing. In John 5:30, He says, “By myself I can do nothing…” WOW, Jesus reveals the same thing about us in John 15:5: Without Him, we can do nothing. I began to visualize various steps of our Lord Jesus as He teaches us how to walk with Him, to mimic Him, and never to walk alone.
I remember Jesus went off to pray. Mark 1:35 tells us that He went off early in the morning to a solitary place to pray. I love my early mornings with God. I can’t imagine beginning my day without spending time with our Lord in prayer and His Word, and in quiet, listening for Him. I thought of all the brave souls who wake early to be on HeartStrong, thirsty to learn and lean deeper into His Word and be close to God. In the moments when I feel alone, I find great peace in remembering the words of Jesus: “I am not alone, for my Father is with Me” (John 16:32). Jesus also gave us a template for prayer (Matthew 6). This is a special time when you know you are not walking alone. A personal time that should bring us closer to our God, beginning with praise to Him, and asking for our needs, for forgiveness and help in our daily struggles, along with praying for others and those troubling things in this world.
In Mark 4, Jesus taught us how to live in peace through our storms in life. Surrounded by panicking disciples, Jesus slept in the boat as the wind raged around them. His friends didn’t think Jesus cared until He called for peace, and all was calm. Jesus asked two very blunt questions: “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” This story has helped me through many trials in life. When we feel like panicking, we confess our need for Jesus and allow Him to take care of us. I always find it amazing how close I feel to Jesus when struggles begin to brew. Don’t walk through the storm alone. Take the hand of our God of Peace.
I love the story in John 4 as Jesus meets the woman at the well. Jesus’ journey took Him to an area where Jews would avoid, Samaria. And He did the unthinkable. He not only found Himself alone talking with a woman, but she was a Samaritan woman. To start the conversation, Jesus asked for a drink, but He knew this woman was thirsty. But her thirst was not for water from this well, but for Living Water that only He could provide. As I think of this story, I remember my own testimony. Remember your mess and where He met you. He was not afraid. He knew you were thirsty. Unafraid, Jesus goes out of His way to meet us where we are, to bring the Good News. I think of how important it can be for us to go out of our way to speak the Word of God to those lost, hungry and thirsty for the truth. Our testimonies are important, and when we tell them, we are never alone. He is with us.
John 21:25 tells us that Jesus did many things, and if they were all documented, the whole world could not hold all the books that would be written. He was with Moses in the desert; with Joseph in prison; with David as he slew Goliath; and with Elijah on Mount Horeb. So, we should always remember that when we walk with Christ, we never walk alone.
Prayer: We pray, Lord, that this world would be so filled with notes and journals of gratitude, cards of thanks and an overflow of love from our hearts as we glorify You for all that You have done for us and how You have taught us to live. Let the world be so full of rejoicing, praise and worship to our King. Thank You for never leaving us, always teaching us and drawing us closer and closer to be like You. We keep You, Jesus, at the center of our lives, in perfect vision, so we never walk alone…. Amen
