21/05/2026
Recently, Pete and I both found ourselves in London on marathon day — for different reasons — but we met along the Embankment in the warm sunshine before both our events started. As I walked back down the street towards my event, I was unexpectedly moved to tears watching the action unfold.
What struck me most wasn’t just the effort or determination of those taking part, but the crowds. People were cheering on complete strangers — with banners, cowbells, and shouts of encouragement — willing them on, step by step, towards the finish line. It made me think about how much encouragement matters.
I was reminded of the words from Proverbs: “As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another.” (Proverbs 27:17). It’s a picture of discipleship, fellowship, and the importance of church family life. We are not meant to walk this journey of faith alone — we are called to encourage, support, and strengthen one another along the way. The Christian life isn’t a race in the same sense as the marathon — we’re not competing against one another — but we are all on a journey of faith. And one day, we will be able to say we have run the race set before us, having ran to win the race, faithfully completing what God has set before us.
Songs like “Faith and Faithfulness” from New Wine remind us that it is God who sustains us through it all — His faithfulness carrying us, even when we feel weary. So let’s be people who cheer one another on. Let’s be quick to encourage, to support, and to walk alongside each other. Because sometimes, a simple word of encouragement can make all the difference in helping someone keep going.
Lord God, thank You that we do not walk this journey of faith alone. Thank You for the people You place around us to encourage, support, and strengthen us. Help us to be those who lift others up, who speak life and hope, and who walk faithfully alongside one another. And when we grow weary, remind us of Your constant faithfulness, carrying us through. Amen.
