Night running!

Scott Harman July 28, 2026 3 1

Playlists

Add to Favourites

Save for later

Listen to this daily worship

Psalm 119: 105-112 (NIV-UK)

105 Your word is a lamp for my feet,
    a light on my path.
106 I have taken an oath and confirmed it,
    that I will follow your righteous laws.
107 I have suffered much;
    preserve my life, Lord, according to your word.
108 Accept, Lord, the willing praise of my mouth,
    and teach me your laws.
109 Though I constantly take my life in my hands,
    I will not forget your law.
110 The wicked have set a snare for me,
    but I have not strayed from your precepts.
111 Your statutes are my heritage for ever;
    they are the joy of my heart.
112 My heart is set on keeping your decrees
    to the very end.

There is a race that takes place here in my home called the Ragnar Run. It starts in St. Paul and it ends in Duluth. For those that aren’t familiar with my part of the world, find a map of North America. You can’t miss the Great Lakes. Duluth is at the tip of the largest of the Great Lakes, Superior, the farthest to the West in the chain. When runners get to the end all they want to do is soak in the cool waters of North America’s largest freshwater lake. But, you have to get there first.  

The start of the race is in St. Paul, the capital of Minnesota. That’s about 200 miles South of Duluth. Imagine running from Glasgow to Edinburgh and back, twice. Plus the race always occurs in the hottest part of the summer. Hills, heat scorching off the roads, no beds, no hotels, just a journey.

Thankfully, the race is not run alone. It’s a relay. Teams of 6-12 runners take legs of 3-12 miles at a time. They start in the morning and it takes the top teams around 30 hours to complete the feat, which guarantees that every runner will run at night.  

On the one hand, it’s not as hot. On the other hand, you are running in the middle of nowhere. There aren’t stadium lights, there aren’t city lights, not even streetlights. Mostly you are on unlit trails. Maybe there is moonlight.  

Most of the runners wear a head lamp. It’s a light strapped to a band worn around the head. It doesn’t show all the miles the runner has to travel. Just the next few steps.  

Thy word is a lamp unto my feet.  

We don’t usually know what’s coming next. We make plans and hope for certain outcomes, but we don’t really know. God’s word can give us what we need to get through the uncertainty. It’s the light to our feet. When we finally step into the cool waters at the end of a long journey, we can always look back and know that God gave us everything we needed to get there.

Prayer:

God remind me of your word. Even if I haven’t been reading the Bible every day. Remind me of your word. Give me something, even if it is a memory from my childhood, that will light my path today.