Everyone’s got themselves in a hurry. In the movie “Shawshank Redemption”, at age 73 and after 50 years in prison Brooks is let out on parole in 1955. He writes a letter to his friends still kin prison and tells them, “Everyone’s got themselves in a hurry.” Used to the slow pace of prison life,…
DetailsDeep Dive Into Leprosy λεπρὸς (lepros) – “leper” The Greek word λεπρὸς (lepros) is used to describe the man who approaches Jesus. While traditionally translated as “leper,” this term was used for various skin diseases in ancient times, not just what we now know as leprosy. This broader understanding of the term highlights the social…
DetailsA man with leprosy scared everybody but Jesus as he approached him and fell on his knees begging, “You can make me clean if you want to.” Jesus became deeply stirred, reached out and touched the guy, saying, “I’m willing. Be clean!” And, he was! Just like that. Clean! Jesus, still angry at how sin…
DetailsJake was absolutely remarkable yesterday. Story time. I walked the 17+ miles from San Quirico to Radicofani in abt 6.5 hrs. I am not fast. But neither am I slow. Jake could not leave San Q till 630 pm, because he stayed behind for biz reasons. I asked the hostel in Radicofani to allow me…
DetailsReverse culture shock. I reckoned that I would need to transition back to a ‘normal’ routine after the walk. ‘Normal’, however, is a moving target. After spending nearly 25 years in the Navy, then Far East Asia, mostly Japan, I had to transition back to the US. The ‘issues’ that come up whe transitioning have…
DetailsPersonality Flaw #2 I am often guilty of not having thought things through. It would have made all kinds of sense for me to practice a long walk, say 100 miles, before committing myself to nearly 1,200 miles of walking. My farthest practice walk was 22 miles. I’ve done more than that multiple times on…
DetailsThe Tunnel I’ve posted about the Swim, and the Ravine. Then, there’s the Tunnel. At some point when I was preparing for this trek I was in a popular FB group devoted to the VF. One of the often asked questions was some form of ‘How long does it take to finish the entire trek?’…
DetailsIn this reflective piece by Bill Belew, the author shares a candid account of his personality flaw of pushing things to their limits, often to the point of breaking. He recounts a particularly challenging day where he experimented with an early start to beat the heat, only to continue walking through brutal conditions. Despite the…
DetailsJesus interacted with Peter’s mother-in-law, not only healing here but restoring her dignity and giving her purpose back. No, Jesus wasn’t being demeaning by allowing her to serve them again. He himself was a servant. No doubt, Peter’s mother-in-law was delighted to be able to show them hospitality. Jesus not only healed her body, he…
DetailsJesus is not just another teacher or healer but is engaging in a cosmic battle that completely transforms how we understand His mission. Have you ever wondered why people reacted so strongly to Jesus? It wasn’t just His words—they’d heard teachers before. In that synagogue, Jesus wasn’t just teaching… He was declaring war? When He…
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