Message summary: What "mile" is God asking you to walk faithfully today? How have you experienced His strength during seasons when your own was not enough?

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"But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God" (Acts 20:24).

Yesterday we were on a portion of the Appalachian Trail about 30 miles north of our home. The AT extends almost 2,200 miles between Springer Mountain in Georgia and Mount Katahdin in Maine passing through 14 states, including a 229.6 mile portion in Pennsylvania. More than three million people hike segments of it each year so I reckon that would include us.

We met a young couple (photo above) on the trail and I asked if they were thru-hikers, a term describing those hiking the entire trail. Indeed they were, beginning the hike three months earlier in Georgia and expecting to finish in Maine in three months. The Appalachian Trail Conservancy estimates there are over 3,000 attempts to traverse the entire trail each year, about 25% (750) succeed.

The Christian life is like a thru-hike. You have a beginning point, going back to the time you place your faith in Christ, then a long hike with many ups and downs, "through many dangers, toils, and snares". Then a glorious finish.

We met the couple in Swatara Gap, a notch in Blue Mountain where the Swatara Creek runs through. They had just trekked down into the gap and I told them they now had a big hill to climb, which of course they knew.

You don't walk this trail by sprinting but by taking the next faithful step. There will be steep climbs, storms, blisters, bruises, insects, and days when you wonder if it's worth continuing.

God doesn't show us the entire trail at once. He gives us enough light for today's path, enough strength for today's miles, and His presence for every step. Rest when we need to, encourage those we meet along the way, and trust that every challenge is shaping us more into His image.

The destination is important, but so is who we become on the journey. As Scripture reminds us, "Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus" (Hebrews 12:1–2). Keep hiking. God is walking with us one step at a time.

A thru-hike teaches what the Christian life has always required: daily dependence on God. No one completes the Appalachian Trail in a single day. The Psalmist gives this appeal, "Teach us to number our days" (Psalm 90:12). The thru-hike is finished through thousands of ordinary, faithful steps. One AT thru-hiker reported his phone recorded 5,338,400 steps at the finish. That's one humongous leap of land made possible one step at a time.

In the same way, God doesn't ask us to lump tomorrow's burdens into our thoughts today (see Matthew 6:34). He invites us to trust Him for today's grace. He will take care of tomorrow's burdens tomorrow.  "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

Some days the trail is breathtaking. Other days it's covered in mud, rain, and uncertainty. There are moments when our strength feels gone and the next mile seems impossible. Yet those are often the places where God's faithfulness becomes most evident. He reminds us that our strength is not enough and it was never meant to be. His grace is!

Every grueling climb on the hike has a purpose. Every dark valley has something to teach. Every pause to rest is an opportunity to remember that we are sustained not by our own strength, but by the Lord who walks beside us. The Shepherd never loses sight of His sheep, even when the trail disappears from view.

As we walk on our thru-hike today, let us not be consumed by how far we still have to go. Receive the gift of this mile, this moment, this day's provision. Trust the One who has gone before us, who knows every turn in the trail, and who has promised never to leave us nor forsake us.

Be encouraged today, Hebrews 3:13.

Stephen & Brooksyne Weber