Journey in the Bible: What Scripture Says About Life With God “On the Way”
This year, the word I’m focusing on is journey—my word of the year.
I didn’t choose it because it feels neat or inspiring. I chose it because Scripture keeps insisting on it. Again and again, the Bible describes life with God not as something settled quickly or fully understood early, but as something lived on the move—through departure and delay, obedience and uncertainty, loss and renewal.
As I look ahead to this year, I find myself wanting language that makes room for unfolding rather than arrival, for trust rather than control. I don’t know what to expect this year, but the only constant is change. Scripture’s way of speaking about journey gives me a place to explore without expecting to have a single answer or image of the destination. It invites me to pay attention to how God meets me not only at the destination, but along the way.
Journey Begins Before Understanding
(Genesis 12:1–4)
One of the first things that stands out in Scripture is how often journeys begin before people understand what they’re agreeing to.
Abram is told to leave his land, his people, and his sense of security without being given a clear picture of where he is going or how the promise will unfold. The story moves forward with obedience first and clarity later.
As I sit with this at the start of the year, I think this is happening to me too. It is too soon to talk about, but I’ll fill you in when I can. I’m well aware that I don’t have a full picture of what lies ahead. I very much want more information, more certainty, more reassurance before moving forward. And yet God seems far less concerned with preparedness than with response.
Journey, in the Bible, often begins before things make sense. I am glad to have some years with trusting Him, as he has surely been preparing me, though I still feel unprepared!
Journey Is Slower Than Expected
(Exodus 16–17; Numbers 14)
If journey were only about arrival, Israel’s story would read very differently.
The distance from Egypt to the promised land is not great, yet Scripture records years of wandering marked by repetition, complaint, and daily dependence. What could have been efficient becomes formative. God continues to provide, guide, and remain present even when progress feels stalled (thankfully!).
This challenges something in me. I tend to associate faithfulness with forward motion—clear progress, visible results. Bible accounts disrupt that assumption. Slowness is not treated as failure. Delay is not framed as abandonment. The journey itself becomes the place where trust is reshaped. I will need to remember that the destination is not the accomplishment – the road and the pauses are.
As I think about this year, I’m aware of areas where I want things to move faster than they likely will. Scripture invites me to consider that God may be at work even when the pace feels frustratingly slow or stalled.
Journey Is Lived Step by Step
(Genesis 5:24; Deuteronomy 10:12–13)
Scripture often describes life with God using the simple language of walking.
Enoch is remembered not for accomplishments or outcomes, but for walking with God. Israel is later called not to rush ahead or stand still, but to walk in God’s ways. The imagery is ordinary and unremarkable—and that seems intentional.
Walking suggests repetition, attention, and pace. It’s not dramatic. It doesn’t require mastery. It simply requires staying present and continuing forward. I am easily distracted and often read while on the treadmill. This will be stretching me if it is repetition and slow placed. Perhaps a shift toward prayer on the treadmill would benefit me.
Some Journeys Are Forced, Not Chosen
(2 Kings 24–25; Jeremiah 29:10–14)
Not every biblical journey begins with a calling. Some begin with loss.
Exile is one of Scripture’s most painful journeys—marked by displacement, grief, and the unsettling question of whether God’s promises still hold. God’s people are moved against their will, far from what feels familiar or faithful.
What surprises me is that Scripture does not treat exile as the end of God’s work. God speaks hope into displacement, promising presence and future restoration even there (I need this hope!).
Jesus Shows Where the Journey Leads
(Luke 9:51; Luke 24:13–35)
When Jesus enters the story of Scripture, He is almost always on the move.
He walks dusty roads, withdraws to quiet places, and eventually sets His face toward Jerusalem, fully aware of where that road will lead. He invites others not simply to agree with Him, but to follow—to share the journey.
A significant number of stories in the gospels is about Jesus “on the road” and people stopping him. He does not avoid the hardest parts of the road. His journey leads through suffering before it leads to resurrection. Loss comes before restoration. And yet Scripture presents this not as failure, but as fulfillment. I need to keep in mind that loss, delays and stops along this road called 2026, these are not failure.
God is faithful to carry us through even the darkest stretches in life. Trust, patience, and hope are shaped gradually, often quietly, over time.
Growth unfolds along the way, not after arrival. He works as he walks – inviting us to walk and work as well.
God does not offer immediate clarity nor demand visible progress. He invites faithfulness in movement—showing up, continuing on, and trusting that He is at work even when the changes are barely noticeable.
Living This Year as a Journey With God
Focusing on journey as my word of the year won’t be about predicting what lies ahead. I’m looking forward to seeing how God meets me along the way. I hope he surprises me and that I take it well!
Scripture consistently points to our active God who walks with His people—through clarity and confusion, movement and waiting, stops and starts, beginnings and endings. The Bible does not promise that every step will make sense, but it does promise that the journey is held within God’s faithfulness from beginning to end and He accompanies us.
