It is said of Enoch that he walked with God for 300 years (see Genesis 5:22). God was so pleased with him that he took him straight to heaven, skipping death. Walking with God seems to be very important. To do it for 300 years speaks of commitment and dedication.

Health experts have been urging us for years as Canadians to get out and walk. It keeps our hearts and lungs healthy, enables our muscles and limbs to stay strong, and even fights depression and melancholy. For many people it’s also a social event because they talk and catch up with friends as they cover the miles.

To walk with God is not an exercise event. It’s a way of life during which a person pays attention to God every day, speaks with Him in prayer, consults with Him through His word, and develops a strong relationship with the Almighty. Like Enoch did over time, we learn more and more about God and come to love Him for all His goodness. Genesis 6:9 tells us “Noah was a righteous man, blameless in his time; Noah walked with God.” He was unlike the sin-filled people of his day. Walking with God made him into a great spiritually minded man.

The disciples of Jesus walked with Him all over Palestine. They covered the territory all around the Sea of Galilee, down the Jordan valley, throughout Judea and Jerusalem, Samaria, and even up through Tyre in Phoenicia. They must have been healthy, rigorous people, but I’m sure they tired of traveling so much, especially on foot. But Jesus talked as they walked every day, discussed all kinds of things together, shared meals, and dealt with the multitudes. And often the 12 were mesmerized by his miracles of healing, mastery over nature, and authority over the demons. Their walk with the Master changed their lives.

Physical exercise will keep our bodies healthy. Walking with God is more of a spiritual experience, strengthening our lives – body, soul and spirit. Paul told Timothy, “…for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come.”

Go and walk with God. Take someone with you.

– Tim Johnson