Walking was first mentioned in the Bible in Genesis 3:8, “Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day.” It was while walking in the garden that God typically spoke to Adam and Eve. How meaningful for us to walk through our neighborhoods, through our parks and through our communities while talking to our Creator, the One who knows us best!

Walking is mentioned 247 times in the Bible. Our bodies were made for walking. We were built to stand erect. Our organs function best when given room to work. Our joints need movement to maintain good range of motion. None of this can be accomplished by sitting in a chair or lying on a couch. The benefits of walking are numerous. In a report from the US Surgeon General, “significant benefits can be obtained by including a moderate amount of physical activity (30 minutes of brisk walking or raking leaves, 15 minutes of running or 45 minutes of playing volleyball) on most days of the week. “The benefits of walking are compelling. Regular walking can prevent depression, lengthen lifespan, lower stress levels, relieve arthritis and back pain, strengthen muscles, bones and joints, improve sleep.” (aarp.org/health/fitness/walking)

With all of these benefits, why wouldn’t we want to walk? The 21st century time crunch and the multitask generation is the problem. With this in mind, The Walk to Jerusalem was launched in January 2002. The Walk to Bethlehem followed closely behind and was launched in September 2002. By using the popular idea of multitasking, these walks provide an opportunity for walkers to exercise the physical body by walking, exercise the spiritual body by praying and exercise the mind by learning about countries and cultures.

The Walk to Jerusalem is an imaginary walk that encourages walkers to increase physical activity, spiritual growth, and cultural awareness through a virtual tour to Jerusalem.

Since those first walks in 2002, churches and organizations throughout the US and Canada have embraced this program. It has crossed the lifespan and crossed all of earth’s oceans. The initial route began in the Midwest, crossed the Atlantic Ocean and continued along the coast of Northern Africa through Morocco, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, Egypt and Israel. Walkers from Hawaii crossed the Pacific Ocean and traveled through Korea, China and Europe. Walkers have taken detours to historic church landmarks. Walkers have visited missionaries in countries such as Tanzania and Kenya. All of this has been done with the intent of increasing the health of body, mind and spirit. Many walkers have commented about how they have successfully increased their physical activity through this program because it is goal oriented and encourages team spirit and accountability. Others have commented about their increased knowledge and understanding of countries and cultures. Finally, the walkers have enjoyed the focus on prayer and spiritual growth through the devotions. Many walkers have found that their prayer time has increased and become more meaningful while walking.

Our walk will start in Maitland, FL on January 15th and we should arrive in Jerusalem by April 8th to celebrate Easter. The total distance we will walk is 6555 miles. That averages out to a little over 645 miles per week or almost 78 miles per day. While those numbers would be daunting if this were a solo journey, we can take comfort in the knowledge that we don’t walk alone. The time each person spends walking can serve as a wonderful time of devotion to our Lord. I think of the time Jesus and his disciples spent traveling and the conversations they must have had. We only have a small record of those conversations in scripture, but I’m sure there were many lessons from Jesus to help strengthen the faith of those early disciples as they walked from place to place learning and serving.

There is a weekly devotion to strengthen our faith, a mileage and food tracker, and a module that describes the local area and culture of each stop we collectively make. We will start our journey by collecting data that we will again measure at the end of our tour. Blood pressure, weight, and waist measurements will show the effectiveness of the journey to increase the fitness of our bodies. I hope to also hear that walkers experienced positive outcomes regarding their faith and mental outlook as well. We will keep track of our miles on the bulletin board in the hallway across from the library and in the weekly bulletins. All participants have the opportunity to win prizes as we go, and anyone can participate. If you prefer swimming, or cycling rather than walking, your activity still counts as twenty minutes of exercise (any kind) counts for one mile. As an incentive to involve every member of the family, each family that participates together will score an extra five miles per week.

I consider this a great program to help us get healthier, have fun, and pray through our neighborhoods. I hope you will join in as we head to Jerusalem, deepening our relationships and faith as we go. Please contact Regina Buchanan, Faith Community Nurse, to join the walk, or with questions at rbuchanan@fpcmaitland.org or (407)644-3455 ext. 347.