By: Pastor Jarren Rogers

The forbidden words which have never been uttered. Not once have they ever graced my ears. Never before have I seen them cross her lips.

“I’ll go running with you.” She said it so matter-of-fact as if what she was saying did not deserve a reaction.

“Are you serious?” I chuckled, “When was the last time you went running?”

She eyed me seriously and shrugged. “I don’t know. Like high school.”

My wife, ever the athlete.

“Okay, let’s do it!” I clapped my hands and ran upstairs to put on my running gear.

I donned my blue-red shoes, the armband to hold my phone, and, most importantly, the headlamp. It was around 8:00 at night, so the sun was long gone.

I headed downstairs to find my wife standing by the door wearing her purple Nike’s.

“Ready?” I asked.

“Yep.” I tapped open the garage door as we stepped out into the garage. We walked out onto our driveway and I turned to the keypad on the wall. I punched in the code and watched the garage door close behind us. I clicked on my headlamp and looked at Annie. The light shone on her face and she squinted her eyes closed, “Uhh, ow!” she said, holding up her hand.

I apologized and walked to the end of the drive to meet the sidewalk. She came up beside me.

“Here we go,” I said as we began to jog.

I was forced to jog slower and take shorter strides so as not to leave Annie behind. It wasn’t that she was a slow jogger, part of it was simply that I’m so much taller than her.

We ran down the sidewalk, our steps tapped and scuffed in the dead, night air. It was cool, but not so cold that our breath was visible.

We ran for about a quarter of a mile. We talked about this and that. I pointed out the scenery and showed her the house with the angry dog.

All of a sudden, two shadowy figures popped up on the edge of the light beam that protruded from my lamp. As they came into view, it became clear that it was an older couple out for a walk.

I quickly became aware that the sidewalk wasn’t going to be big enough for four people to walk astride. Someone was going to be pushed off the sidewalk. Us or them.

Being the respectful youngster I am (respecting your elders and all that) I stepped down onto the road and jogged ahead to give them plenty of room to pass by.

It was then I heard someone call my name.

“Jarren!”

I turned around. My lamp cast a yellow light on the backs of the couple who had just passed us. But it wasn’t them. It was beyond them. The voice came from a bit farther back.

I jogged back the way I had come to find the source. It was then that Annie stumbled into my view.

“You left me behind!”

“What?” I said, “No I didn’t. Why didn’t you follow me?”

“Jarren. You have the light. When you jogged off to make room for that couple, I couldn’t see.”

When she said that, I thought about this verse:

“Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path” (Psalm 119:105).

God’s Word will never leave us. Even when the world is chaotic, even when darkness fills our life, His Word continues to offer hope, truth, and light. When you’re looking for the next step, or simply the strength to stand, look to His Word. He will never leave you in the dark.

“Sorry about that,” I said. We began jogging again, side-by-side.

After jogging a few steps, I said, “You know, that would make a pretty good devotional.”

She looked at me, “This better not end up in Daily Pursuits.”

Sorry, Annie.