It’s nice to have something or someone to lean on

I heard a story the other day about an old man who walked slowly through the church sanctuary to the pastor’s office while the choir practiced. He was hunched over, leaning precariously on a walking stick.

A few minutes later, he left the pastor’s office and made his way back through the sanctuary, walking tall and moving gracefully.

“Goodness gracious,” the choir director said. “Did the pastor heal you?”

“No,” the old gentleman said. “He just gave me a walking stick that wasn’t too short for me.”

You realize walking sticks have been in use from the earliest days of Bible history. You’ll recall that Moses and his brother Aaron each had one. The Old Testament prophet Zechariah once described Israel as blessed because it had so many older men and women with walking sticks.

I met a fellow earlier this year who makes and sells walking sticks. He had them piled in the back seat of his truck. Some had crooked handles. Some were straight. Some were long. Some were short. Most were varnished to a shine and ready to be displayed atop a flea market table where, he knew from experience, they would sell like hotcakes.

Such walking sticks are incredibly popular.

Anyone who has ever been at risk of falling knows the confidence that comes with having a walking stick to lean on.

The only thing better is having a friend to lean on. And there’s never been a better friend than Jesus. Lean on Him, and you can walk tall and gracefully, like the old fellow leaving the pastor’s office.

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Reach Roger Alford at rogeralford1@gmail.com or (502) 514-6857.