Running with Baby
Megan Breedlove At three-and-a-half years old, Jessica (whom we call “Baby”) is delighted with her body’s increasing abilities. She loves performing tricks for me, which usually involve some feat of balance or stretching. She’s also becoming a fast runner, losing that cute, toddler run that really young kids have (where they half bounce, half run).
The other day, the kids and I were leaving for somewhere, and I told Jessica to go get in the van. She ran toward it, obviously enjoying her newfound speed. The only problem was that Lindsey saw Jessica begin to run, which of course turned the whole thing into a race. Lindsey started running too, and because she’s two years older than Jessica, she passed Jessica up and made it to the van first.
What caught my attention was what happened when Lindsey passed Jessica. Jessica glanced up, saw Lindsey, and stopped running. Her little head drooped, and she walked the rest of the way to the van with her head down.
Two applications came to mind, and I want to share them both with you. First, I’ll share the more obvious one. I had planned to write this devotional about how we as Christians often leave weaker or less-experienced brothers and sisters behind, turning the Christian walk into a Christian race. We run on ahead of them, oblivious to the pain we cause them.
We should be conscious of our brothers and sisters along the way. The whole point of the Christian walk is the journey, not who can “win”. Sometimes, we’ll be the weaker sister, and sometimes we’ll be the stronger. But it doesn’t really matter, because we’re all on the same team and should all be working together.
It’s a good application, and it’s something we need to think about. But it’s the second, less-obvious application that I’m supposed to dwell on this week. That application is this: Jesus never leaves us behind in our journey toward the goal. He is infinitely more holy, powerful, and knowledgeable than we are, yet He travels with us instead of leaving us in His dust. He doesn’t drag us behind Him because we are too slow. Instead, He shows patience with us as we walk, so that one day, we will reach the journey’s end together.
What Lindsey did was perfectly natural. She wasn’t trying to make Jessica feel bad. She simply saw Jessica enjoying herself and decided to have the same kind of fun by pushing her own body to go faster. But how much different would it have been if she had extended a hand to Jessica and said, “Let’s run together!” Jessica’s joy would have been greater, and so would Lindsey’s.
Likewise, our joy increases when Jesus takes our hand and runs with us. What’s even more amazing is that His does too. He loves being together with us. We love being with Him (unless there’s something wrong). And when two people who delight in each other’s presence spend time together, the joy of both increases.
So next time you’re going somewhere, remember that Jesus is going with you. You can’t outrun Him, and He won’t outrun you. You’re in this together.
Psalm 89:15—Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, O LORD.
