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“Do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you.” — Genesis 45:5 After a grueling afternoon on the Appalachian Trail, I stopped to rest, exhausted, by a gurgling stream. I’d been hiking the “Roller Coaster,” a section of trail with ten steep ascents and descents in the mountains of Virginia. The steep rises and plunges of the “Roller Coaster” reminded me of the experience of Joseph. As a young man, Joseph was bright and full of life, the favorite of his father. That drove his brothers crazy with jealousy and envy, however. And one day those brothers took revenge, selling Joseph into slavery in Egypt. There we see him rise and fall, gaining honor but also getting thrown into prison for a wrong he did not commit. But God was with Joseph, and eventually God raised him to become a ruler in Egypt, second only to Pharaoh the king. Later, when his brothers came to Egypt to buy food because there was a great famine, they found themselves in the hands of Joseph and were afraid he would take revenge on them. But Joseph had learned about depending on God. He saw God’s watchful care in all the ups and downs of his life, and he saw how God had planned to save many lives through him. As we experience ups and downs in life, we can take comfort that in all circumstances God is with us, redeeming and purifying us for work that he has planned for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Lord Jesus, help us to take comfort in your sure and steady hand and to trust in your purposes and plans for our lives. Amen.

So Abraham called that place The Lord Will Provide. — Genesis 22:14 Leaving Cornelius Creek on the Appalachian Trail one morning in Virginia, I began the long, steep climb to Apple Orchard Mountain. Stopping frequently, I leaned against trees to catch my breath. As I struggled up the mountain, I thought about Abraham’s hike into the mountains with Isaac. God told Abraham to take his son Isaac to the region of Moriah and to sacrifice him as a burnt offering on a mountain there. So Abraham obeyed. Reaching the mountain, they slowly climbed to “the place God had told him about.” Isaac noted that they had no lamb for the burnt offering, but Abraham said, “God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering, my son.” Abraham then bound his son and placed him on the altar. But as Abraham took the knife to sacrifice his son, God stopped him, saying, in effect, “Now I know that you trust me above all else.” What a horrifying scene! We might ask, “What kind of father is Abraham? And what kind of God is this?” Or perhaps we should ask, “What was God actually planning and revealing here?” Looking back, we see that while Abraham was being tested, he also trusted God to provide the lamb in place of his son. And looking ahead, we see that God provided his own Son, Jesus, as the Lamb of God, who died in our place to pay for our sin and give us eternal life (John 1:29; 3:16)! Father, while we struggle to understand this test of Abraham, guide us to live by faith, knowing that your own Son gave up his life for us. Amen.

“Go, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” — Genesis 13:17 It was damp and cold when I woke in the morning at Matt’s Creek on the Appalachian Trail in Virginia. After crawling out of my sleeping bag, eating some cold oatmeal with nuts, and loading my pack, I was back on the trail. My destination for that day was the Punchbowl Shelter. As I walked, the clouds slowly drifted away and the sun broke through. By mid-morning it was a lovely day, and I was thinking about Abraham’s long walk through Canaan. God had brought Abram (whom he later renamed Abraham) and his household on a long journey from Harran (in present-day Turkey) to the land of Canaan (present-day Israel). God had made promises, and Abraham had trusted God, taking him at his word (Genesis 12:1-7). As we can see in today’s passage, God promised to give Abraham all of the land that he could see around him in Canaan. And God said, “Go, walk through the length and the breadth of the land, for I am giving it to you.” God promised to bless Abraham and his descendants there, and Abraham settled in that land and worshiped the Lord. As I reached Punchbowl Shelter, I gave thanks for Abraham’s example. God might not call us to journey on foot, but he does call each of us to follow him in faith and faithfulness. And through Jesus, a descendant of Abraham, God keeps his promises to us. Lord Jesus, give us the faith and faithfulness to follow where you lead, trusting in you. Amen.

Noah did everything just as God commanded him. — Genesis 6:22 About 3 million people hike along the Appalachian Trail each year. About 3,000 people try to walk the entire trail—from Springer Mountain in Georgia to Mount Katahdin in Maine. But only about 25 percent of those manage to finish. It takes grit to hike 5 million steps! Noah had grit. Noah’s story isn’t about walking a trail, but about building an ark. And if you’ve ever built anything, you know that it involves many steps in a process. Gathering materials, measuring, cutting, fitting, shaping, joining, finishing. Piece by piece, the ark took shape. God had commanded Noah to build an enormous lifeboat on dry land. It took Noah years to complete what seemed an impossible, ludicrous project. Imagine the courage, resolve, and sheer stamina it took to work on the ark day after day as his neighbors mocked him. God chose Noah not for his grit but for his faith. When he received God’s command, Noah didn’t hesitate. Though he may have had doubts, he acted in faith, step by step, until the ark was ready. Hebrews 11:7 commends Noah for his active faith. In the face of what seemed ridiculous and impossible, Noah walked with God. We may not finish every task we try to accomplish for God’s kingdom, but if we step out in faith in obedience to God, we walk with the Lord in his strength. Lord Jesus, help us to live by faith in you, with courage, confidence, and boldness in following, obeying, and serving you in the world. Amen.

Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away. — Genesis 5:24 Walking a long-distance trail can give you a feeling of timelessness. Although the landscape changes, the day-to-day rhythm remains the same: walk, eat, sleep; repeat. The life of Enoch, an early descendant of Adam and Eve, also has a sense of timelessness about it. He lived for 365 years and did not die! Yet Enoch’s lifespan was short for his family. Enoch’s father, Jared, lived to the age of 962. At age 65, Enoch had a son named Methuselah, who lived to be 969 years old! The four short verses about Enoch’s life don’t tell us much, but we do learn one crucial fact about him: “Enoch walked faithfully with God.” In his long life of stepping through each day, Enoch walked in a way that pleased God. In fact, God was so pleased with Enoch’s faithful walk that he spared Enoch from the curse of death. Certainly there is mystery in this story. Yet there is no mystery about how to please God. God calls us to walk faithfully with him, trusting him, honoring him, and serving him. God will probably not take us away as he did with Enoch, but we have the comfort of knowing that Jesus, who conquered sin and death for us, has promised never to leave or forsake us when our own lives end. Lord Jesus, help us to walk faithfully with you, looking forward to the day when we will join with you and all your faithful followers forever! Amen.

“I will be a restless wanderer on earth, and whoever finds me will kill me.” — Genesis 4:14 While hiking the Appalachian Trail, how can you know if you’re on the right track? You simply follow the white trail markers, or “blazes,” painted on trees along the way. If you see the white blazes, you know you’re still on the path. Yet stepping off the trail and getting lost in the woods is not uncommon. For a hiker, that can be a dangerous sort of “missing the mark.” In our passage today, Cain turns away from walking with God and is lost. In this appalling story showing the depths of human sin, Cain attacks and kills his brother Abel because he feels slighted and resentful. The brokenness caused by sin blooms fully in this first murder in human history. Looking back now, who can count the lives lost because of sin? When God confronts Cain with his hideous deed, Cain isn’t sorry. He is concerned only about his own fate. He is terrified that others will follow his example and kill him. Though God graciously marks Cain to protect him from violence, Cain remains lost as a wanderer and a fugitive. In the Bible the Hebrew word for “sin” (hatta’t) literally means “missing the mark.” In our alienation from God and from others, we miss the mark. We are all lost. But Jesus finds us and sets us on the right path, the way of following him and loving others. Lord Jesus, we are lost without you. Help us to walk in your ways and to love others, just as you have loved us. Amen.

The man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day. . . . — Genesis 3:8 While hiking the Appalachian Trail, I enjoyed the early April wildflowers blooming along the pathway. I particularly noticed a crocus with a beautiful white flower. Sadly, its stem had broken, and it drooped sideways. It reminded me of the first walking scene in the Bible. Adam and Eve must have enjoyed walking with God “in the cool of the day” in their garden home. But in today’s story from Genesis 3, they were deeply anxious. Earlier in the day, they had disobeyed God, doing the one thing God had told them not to do. God had created Adam and Eve to live in fellowship with himself, with each other, and in harmony with the earth and its creatures. In their disobedience, however, they tried to hide from God, and, as the story continues, we see their alienation from each other and from the rest of God’s good creation. When he comes to walk with them, God finds Adam and Eve cowering in shame. God explains the consequences of their sin. But in his judgment on the serpent, we glimpse God’s promise to redeem fallen humanity back to fellowship with himself, with each other, and with his world. As I hiked through Appalachia in April, I found it was often comfortably cool late in the day, and this drew me to look forward to walking with God and all his family in the world he has promised to redeem. Lord, you have made us for fellowship with you. Thank you for redeeming us through Jesus—to love you, others, and your world. Amen.