“So then, Be careful how you WALK, not as unwise people but as wise…” Ephesians 5:15 NASB
I love the book of Ephesians. My father is a retired pastor and I’m married to a pastor. But one of the sermons I remember the most from my childhood was one on “How to Walk.” Dad took us through the book of Ephesians and showed us the beautiful reminders for the believer in his or her journey on how to walk this path.
It has stuck with me and I still have notes in my Bible from it.
Walking has been on my mind a lot. Not quite a year ago, I helped our grandson learn how to walk for the first time. Next, I purchased a power standing desk and a treadmill underneath it so I could walk and write since my job as an author is pretty sedentary. Then this past fall it was on my mind as I battled one respiratory illness after another for months. It was a challenge to walk and breathe at the same time.
Physical and spiritual value
But as this word – WALK – has surrounded me in the physical sense, it has been brought to mind time and time again for my own spiritual growth.
If we want to walk as the wise—rather than the unwise—then we’ve got some instructions to follow. Here’s a few of them.
WALK in LOVE: Chapter five verses one and two. “…be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love…” I don’t know about you, but it seems like it’s harder and harder in this world to overcome division and truly love as Christ loves us.
WALK in GOOD WORKS: Chapter two verse ten. “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.” Works don’t save us. But they do show our fruit. We need to be trees that are overabundant in fruit, don’t you think?
WALK WORTHY: Chapter four verse one. “Therefore I… urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called…” This one challenges me. Every. Single. Day. Because in my own flesh and blood, I’m not worthy. Through Him? Wow. I am. And as I sit in awe of Who He is—I’m speechless. I long for my walk to be worthy of His calling. Talk about a call to greatness!
WALK in LIGHT: Chapter five verse eight. “… for you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light…” Another great challenging-step-on-my-toes reminder! Almost as if I need to tell myself: “stop it! You’re no longer in darkness! Walk. In. The. Light.”
Imagine what we could accomplish if we applied these walking principles to our everyday lives. It’s pretty amazing to think about.
For most of us, the majority of our lives are spent perfecting this skill we call walking. From baby/toddlerhood and into our old age. Working on the physical walk is great (and good exercise) but working on the spiritual walk is even more important.
Until next time,
Kimberley
#WalkingAndWriting
#AMillionMilesWithKim
Meet Kimberley…
Kimberley Woodhouse is an award-winning and bestselling author of more than twenty-five books. A lover of history, she’s sucked into the past and her husband lures her out with chocolate and golf. Passionate about in-depth Bible study, she has been a Precept Leader for many years. Married to the love of her life for three decades, she lives and writes in the Poconos where she wears the hat of the “coolest grandma.”
To find out more about Kim’s books, follow her on social media, and sign up for her newsletter/blog, visit her website.
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Kimberley, this is so true. All of it. Walking with Christ is a lifelong walk and something we get better at as we go along. If we want to. Or using another metaphor, it’s a marathon, not a sprint.
Thanks.
Kathy Bailey
Absolutely a lifelong marathon. And every so often we are blessed by the spirit to be given a second wind.
Good post…great reminders to meditate on. I am always challenged by there reminder to walk in a manner worthy. I encourager someone who is rude or unfriendly and there I am having to ask myself if the words that are about to walk out of my mouth or the look that is about to walk across my face is worthy of the Gospel I have been given. Thanks Kimberley!
Thank you, Lori, for your sweet note! It’s always one moment, one breath, one day at a time, isn’t it?