Running with Jesus

Read John 11:25-36

Jesus said to her, "I am the resurrection and the life. those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?" She said to him, "Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the son of God, the one coming into the world." John 11: 25-27 (NRSV)

For 'In him [God] we live and move and have our being'. Acts 17:28 (NRSV)

Lea Anne Foster, from Virginia, felt numb in the weeks following her fifty-year-old brother's death. Her daily devotional time devolved into day-dreaming. Procrastination replaced time set aside for prayer. Tears came easier than praise.

Lea was frozen, mourning her brother who spent his life in perpetual motion. He embodied Acts 17:28 by living, moving, and being in the presence of the Lord. He began walking at eight months, mastered any sport he attempted, gave full-body bear hugs, kneeled when he prayed, and clapped to praise songs. His brother, who used his athleticism and his body to glorify God, was gone. Lea felt alone and unmoored.

Her usual ways of connecting with God felt hollow. Then God led her to take a page from her brother's life in order to cope with his death. She needed to interact with God using her body, mind, and spirit. Lea started a running regimen. Some runs were filled with intercessory prayers for their parents and her brother's children. Some runs were spent peppering God with questions about her brother's too-short life. As Lea ran, she became aware of her rhythmic footsteps and God's air in her lungs as a healing balm for her spirit.

Mile after mile, Lea experienced God's presence and understanding. And just as Jesus loved and wept for his friends, he wept with Lea and gave her peace as they ran the miles together.

Prayer: Dear Jesus, thank you for loving us and for your promise of life eternal. We pray in your precious name. Amen.