Moira
ventured on her first long road trip in 1985, from her hometown Peterborough,
Ontario to Caronport, Saskatchewan - all by herself.
An unusual road
sign appeared through the early morning fog: "The Courage Highway." She thought she had misread that. Yet, not
many miles later, another sign read, "You're traveling on The Courage
Highway."
Her heart
leapt in affirmation and wondered if the Lord planted those signs on the
Trans-Canada Highway just to cheer her on!
It wasn't
until she reached Thunder Bay and found herself at the Terry Fox Memorial did
she realize that the last 83 kilometers of his courageous run had been
marked.
On September
1, 1980, after 143 days and 5,373 kilometers of his Marathon of Hope, Terry
stopped. The cancer that claimed his leg had spread to his lungs. The
22-year-old didn't finish the race he had planned, but his vision and
perseverance continues to bear fruit far beyond what he could have
imagined. Terry's example and God's
presence fueled Moira's soul for the road ahead.
The Message
translator, Eugene Peterson, wrote a book entitled, A Long Obedience in the
Same Direction. Like the seemingly endless, flat prairie highway in
Saskatchewan, the journey of life will hit those long stretches of unchanging
scenery. It isn't always easy to "keep on keeping on." Many Bible heroes
traveled that road.
Peterson
paraphrases Hebrews 11:13-16 (MSG) this way:
"Each one of these people of faith
died not yet having in hand what was promised, but still believing. How did
they do it? They saw it way off in the distance, waved their greeting, and
accepted the fact that they were transients in this world. People who live this
way make it plain that they are looking for their true home. If they were
homesick for the old country, they could have gone back any time they wanted.
But they were after a far better country than that - Heaven country. You can
see why God is so proud of them, and has a City waiting for them."
"No one's ever seen or heard anything like
this, never so much as imagined anything quite like it— What God has arranged for those who live him." 1 Corinthians 2:9 NLT