The Pace Setter

I will move along slowly at the pace of the droves before me and that of the children. Genesis 33:14

The devotional for today from Streams of the Desert highlights this verse, which is Jacob’s statement about the pace, he would take when returning to meet his brother Esau. I have never walked with cattle but I certainly have with kids and those tiny steps of theirs have a way of slowing you down. Jacob wasn’t on a leisurely stroll but was going to face his past. Finally having the nerve to do so, I would think he might want to go ahead and get it over with thus pushing those traveling along with him to move faster. Yet he chose to set his pace to match the cattle and children, although he already knew the terrain ahead. His brother, Esau on the other hand was not journeying with such a caravan and could probably forge ahead faster.

It makes me think of how at times I’m tempted to compare my pace in life with the sister (or brother) next to me. It seems like I should be farther along. I should be married with 2.5 kids. I should be doing more volunteering, more mission work, leading more groups. There are so many should be(s) one can get caught up in when peeking into the lives of others. Whether it deals with family life, housekeeping, or blogging, the temptation to follow someone else’s pace exist. However, just as Esau and Jacob’s travelling companions differed, my baggage, my companions are uniquely my own.

Before I was born, God set the course of life for me. It is He who knows the way that I take.  I have never been this way before but God has and He knows all that the journey comprises. Because He knows me, He knows the proper pace for me even when I think it should be faster or I’d much rather slow down. I find comfort in the writer’s statement below.

He knows that all the time and will never make you take even one step beyond what your feet are able to endure. Never mind if you think you are unable to take another step, for either He will strengthen you to make you able, or He will call a sudden halt, and you will not have to take it at all. –Frances Ridley Havergal from Streams in the Desert.

Sending you cheers as you walk (or run) along the journey and resolving to stay at my own pace.