The Longest Road to Walk
According to CNBC TV Travel and some social media influencers:
The longest road in the world to walk, is from Cape Town (South Africa) to Magadan (Russia). No need for planes or boats, there are bridges. It's a 22,387 kilometers (13911 miles) and it takes 4,492 hours to travel. It would be 187 days walking nonstop, or 561 days walking 8 hours a day. Along the route, you pass through 17 countries, six time zones and all seasons of the year.
CNBC reports:
If you are thinking about embarking on this journey on foot, you will have to keep walking continuously for a total of 4,492 hours. Without breaks, the total time accumulates to 187 days.
If you are thinking about walking eight hours a day, then you will be able to cover this distance in 562 days. In this time, you can conquer the world’s highest peak Mount Everest 13 times and return, as per reports.
This route passes through several conflicted nations like Syria and Sudan. To enter some of these nations on the route, you will be required to apply for a visa.
Besides this, you will be required to deal with the scorching heat of the Sahara Desert, Siberia's nail-biting snow, and so much more.
According to multiple reports, "... no person has been able to complete this long walk so far."
The Bible is replete with references to our spiritual journey being a path, a walk, or a course. At times, walking this path of this Christian life can feel like the longest, most challenging, most difficult walk in the world. But scripture calls us to "run with endurance the race that is set before us." We're challanged to ask, "where the ggod way is; and walk in it." We're told that when we trust in God, He will "make your paths straight." We're admonished to ""Ponder the path of your feet," and to "mark out a straight path." And we're warned to never look back at the road behind us, but to "press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."
When the road your on feels like you're trying to trudge your way from the Capetown to Magadan, through time zones, and battle zones, over the hot sands of the Sahara, and through bone chilling snow drifts of Siberia, keep moving. The Lord Himself walked that road for you, and He will be there to receive you at the finish.
And unlike the reports of the Cape Town to Magadan road which "... no person has been able to complete ... so far," this treck has been completed by masses who alll crossed the finish line, there to hear the words of the Savior, "Well done, my good and faithful servant."
"Thus says the Lord: “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls" (Jeremiah 6:16, ESV).
"Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us" (Hebrews 12:1, ESV).
"John replied in the words of Isaiah the prophet, “I am the voice of one calling in the wilderness, ‘Make straight the way for the Lord" (John 1:23, NIV).
"Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight" (Proverbs 3:5-6, NIV).
"You make known to me the path of life; in your presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalms 16:11, NIV).
"Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me" (Psalms 5:8, NIV).
"Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6, NIV).
"Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure" (Proverbs 4:26, ESV).
"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths" (Psalms 25:4, ESV).
"So take a new grip with your tired hands and strengthen your weak knees. Mark out a straight path for your feet so that those who are weak and lame will not fall but become strong. Work at living in peace with everyone, and work at living a holy life, for those who are not holy will not see the Lord" (Hebres 12:12-14, NLT).
"And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them" (Isaiah 42:16, ESV).
"Ponder the path of your feet; then all your ways will be sure. Do not swerve to the right or to the left; turn your foot away from evil" (Proverbs 4:26-27, ESV).
"Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers and sisters, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:12-14, NIV).
It's An Uphill Battle
According to Greek mythology, Sisyphus was a king who angered the gods by his craftiness and trickery, even having once cheated death. His eternal punishment was to push a boulder up a steep hill, only to watch it roll back down just before he reached the top. Sisyphus would then have to start over, pushing the boulder back up again, in a never-ending cycle of effort without achievement.
Thus, the term "Sisyphean endeavor" refers to a task that is both laborious and futile. It represents the endlessness futility of pursuing worldly success
No matter how many times we push our boulder up the hill of worldly gain and materialism, it always comes right back down. This is the reality we all face until God infuses divine purpose into our otherwise pointless lives.
"Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds" (Ephesians 4:17, ESV).
"Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand" (Proverbs 19:21, ESV).
If only I knew
Imagine yourself as a successful worker thriving in a large accounting firm. You are only fifty years old and still have many things you want to achieve and experience for the rest of your life, including an exciting retirement plan.
But one day, the doctor tells you that you have an inoperable brain cancer and are given only 100 days to live.
For a man named Eugene O’Kelly,* what you just imagined was a reality in his life.
His life story is told in his book titled Chasing Daylight.
On May 24, 2005, Eugene received the devastating news that shattered his life plans.
Upon learning the seriousness of his illness, he did what he was trained to do as an accountant – he made a list:
- Resign from my job.
- Choose medical treatments that allow me to...
- Make the most of the remaining time for those most affected by my condition.
Eugene even made a to-do list for his final days:
- Settle legal and financial matters
- Open up relationships,
- Simplify
- Live for today
- Create joyful moments
- Begin transitioning to the next phase
- Plan the funeral
- Stay positive until the end.
In Scripture, there was a King of Israel who also experienced a similar situation. He knew exactly how long he had left to live in this world. In 2 Kings 20:1-11 we read that King Hezekiah became gravely ill (verse 1), but when he prayed to God, asking for His mercy, God extended hiss life by 15 years (verse 6).
But King Hezekiah didn't initially take full advantage of the remaining time granted to him. In 2 Chronicles 32:24-33 we read that He was first overtaken by pride (verse 25), derailing him from productive and positive use of his remaining time.
*Eugene O'Kelly was a former Chairman and CEO of KPMG, one of the largest U. S. accounting and consulting firms and one of the Big Four auditors. Eugene was elected chairman and CEO of KPMG in 2002 for a term of six years. In May 2005, at age 53, Eugene was diagnosed with a terminal brain tumor.
Fortunately, Hezekiah soon turned away from his pride and began doing good for Israel, making good use of the remaining years of his life. He started by building storehouses (verses 27-28), establishing new cities (verse 29), and constructing water reservoirs for the land of Israel (verse 30).
For most of us, it's is true that we will never know when our end will come. But one thing we can definitively know ... One thing we should know is that we will not be here in this world forever.
Our lives are finite.
May I invite all of us today to imagine the experience of Eugene, who had only 100 days left to live, Just imagine, what you do with those remaining 100 days in your daily life.
Make a list, set priorities. Then live that list out, over and over again, until you actually come to the end of your days. Don't be a Hezekiah, wasting even a single moment of your time. Be a Eugene! And like Eugene, remember to "Stay positive until the end!"
And may we pray with Moses, Psalm 90:12, “Teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”