Take a Walk
We went on ahead to the ship and sailed for Assos, where we were going to take Paul aboard. He had made this arrangement because he was going there on foot. Acts 20:13
Luke wrote the book of Acts, so when he says ‘We went on ahead’ he’s talking about himself and the group of believers all travelling together.
But then Luke puts in this unusual verse above. While the Christian contingent all travel together by ship from Troas to Assos, two towns on the west coast of what is now Turkey, Paul sets off alone by foot. It’s a 32km trip and is surprisingly quicker for a strong walker on foot than the ship would take in their day.
Why did he leave the rest? We don’t know for sure, but Paul had a lot on his mind. He was on his way to Jerusalem and was probably already feeling change was in the air. His missionary journeys had taken him to Cyprus, and then on to what is now Turkey and Greece. He wanted to take the gospel to Spain on the very edge of the Roman Empire.
You and I will never face what he was facing but that doesn’t take away from our need to change the scenery sometimes.
Have you had times in your Christian life when you just wanted to get away from everyone, take a really long walk and have an extended talk with God? If you have, you might have felt just a little of what Paul was feeling.
Taking a long walk is still good therapy for the heart and spirit.
To listen to this message, download in MP3 here