People love counting steps.
Apps on our phones keep track of how many steps we’ve taken each day. You don’t have to wait for a final number. Your watch keeps real-time numbers on display. Some devices even give you a nudge to get a few more steps in here and there.
And these numbers matter to people. At least, they can shape what kind of day you think you had. Have you heard someone say, “I only did 8,000 steps today. I’ll do better tomorrow.” Or, “Today was a good day. I get in over 12,000 steps.”
These steps are about health and wellness. It’s been said that sitting is the new smoking.
So, walk. Take steps to live better.
While your number of steps keeps you healthy, what guides your steps keeps you holy.
Psalm 119:105 is one of those preacher dream verses. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” Your preacher will say something about the Bible being the light that shows us where to go in a dark world. Most of us don’t use lamps to see our way through the dark. Maybe we could say your word is a cell phone flashlight in the night.
Psalm 119:112 says, “I incline my heart to perform your statutes forever, to the end.” That’s the response your preacher would want you to leave with!
That is an answer to a prayer the psalmist made earlier. God granted him the desire to incline his heart. “To the end” brings to mind images of a long life lived with God. Listen, though, to how the Complete Jewish Bible translates the prayer, “I have resolved to obey your laws, at every step.”
Life is every day. Every day is steps. And God’s wisdom makes our steps count. Trusting where and how God leads us reshapes how we see each day. We value each day, then, not by the number of steps. We embrace how we allowed God to guide where our steps take us.
Stay blessed…john
