This summer I decided to build a daily walking habit. Walking is a practically free way to lower your blood pressure, build bone density, cut diabetes risk, loosen stiff joints, whittle your waistline, and—the biggest reason for me—to lower stress.* More days than not, I spent at least twenty minutes in my new walking shoes, completely alone and completely silent, feet slapping the warm pavement while I drank in the humid summer air.
Why Walking Makes Space for Prayer
Walking without normal distractions like headphones or even conversation with a companion allows your mind to drift and sort through lots of things that get shoved down in the hustle and bustle of daily life. As a married woman, teacher, and mom of four, I have many people I care for and who depend on me, but walking gave me a small chunk of the day when I was responsible for only myself. During this rare alone time, my thoughts often turned to prayer, and suddenly, I wasn’t walking alone—I was walking with God.
Visualizing Jesus Beside Me on My Walks
On these daily treks, I started walking on one side of the sidewalk and visualizing Jesus walking in step next to me. That small thing changed how I prayed during those walks, because I started telling God everything. I think, sometimes, we are tempted to believe that God only wants to hear our “nice” prayers. We hold back the violent, petty, humiliating, or overenthusiastic parts of ourselves before God, thinking he only wants the moderate, pious version of us. Nothing could be farther from the truth.
Why You Can Bring Your Whole Self to God in Prayer
First, God already knows everything, so holding anything back from him is just impractical. As Psalm 139:7–10 says:
Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.
Second, Jesus understands the entire range of human emotions, not just because he created emotions but because he lived thirty-three years as a human being on the same Earth we inhabit today, and he felt it all. As it says in Hebrews 4:14–15:
Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.
Jesus Understands Every Emotion You Bring Him
Jesus literally has walked in our shoes, so he understands our annoyed, longing, desperate, jealous, weary, worried hearts—and even with all that knowledge of all our imperfections, the holy Son of God still thought we were worth dying for. Jesus gave up everything for us and thought we were worth it. His perfect life, unjust death, and mystifying resurrection have won the ultimate prize for us, so instead of the hell we deserve when this life is over, we will be greeted by our Savior himself when we close our eyes in death.
We don’t have to wait until we die to have access to the God of the universe—he’s walking with us through everything in our lives.
A Biblical Example of Honest Prayer: King Hezekiah
This means you don’t have to hold anything back. Follow the example of a king in the Old Testament named Hezekiah, who, when a huge army was marching against his city and gaslighting his residents, took an offensive letter from his enemy “. . . and read it. Then he went up to the temple of the Lord and spread it out before the Lord” (2 Kings 19:14).
Lay out your fears, your dreams, your worries before God. He can take the mess you think you are in and use it for good that you can’t even fathom. God created you for a purpose and on purpose. He crafted your personality and body and placed you in just this point of history for his own good plans and pleasure. Not only that, but he is walking with you every single step of your life.
Start Your Own Walking and Prayer Habit Today
I encourage you: Go on a walk today and take God along. Lay all your stuff out before him, with tears and joy, and trust that you are walking with your Savior, who will never stop loving you and will never leave your side.
Want more on the topic of walking with God? Check out Pastor Mike’s message: Confusing Things Christians Say: “Walk with God.”
