When we were house hunting several years ago, I had a list of wants (naturally):

• Located near a body of water
• Enough of a yard to plant things
• Includes a guest room with office(s) to work from home
• Includes a garage
• Located in a walkable neighborhood

Somehow in the crazy uptick of people moving to Nashville, our realtor checked all the boxes and made it happen! We put in an offer after seeing what’s now our current home for 15 minutes. (I actually saw the house once more than my husband and that was during our inspection.)

Other than living close to the lake, one of my favorite parts of this neighborhood is the sidewalks. They really came in handy during COVID as we tried to spend as much time as possible outdoors. It’s funny now to think that just three years ago, it was one of the only ways we could socialize – carrying on loud conversations at a distance from across the street.

Now that it’s warming up here in Tennessee, my husband and I have been more regular about going for walks, although now it’s becoming more of a “we don’t love to do it before work, but know this will benefit us during the day” sort of thing.

We’ve hit a rhythm with it, though. I will start out in the street and he will jump on the sidewalk at the beginning of our route. When we turn on to the main street, I will also transition to the sidewalk, but we have to stagger our steps as it’s challenging to walk side-by-side with the small width (especially as some neighbors’ landscaping starts encroaching on the concrete… but I digress).

This entire thought process is what came to mind when I read Psalms 18:36 this week:

“You have made a wide path for my feet to keep them from slipping.”

The CSB version says, “You make a spacious place beneath me for my steps, and my ankles do not give way.”

My husband and I learned to stagger our steps through experience. We’ve been side-by-side on the sidewalk and both of us at different times have accidentally misstepped, turning our ankles off the side.

This has been such a busy, stressful week with work and this morning was one of the only days I’ve been able to include journaling in my morning routine. I found myself jotting down worries:

• I’m concerned about not pleasing this unhappy client.
• I’m concerned about living up to the expectations of another client.
• I’m concerned about the content we’ve presented to a new client as we wait for feedback.
• I’m concerned about people liking or listening to our new podcast (surprise!).

As I finished writing these out, I already knew what was coming next:

“But you, O Lord, are a shield around me; You are my glory, the one who holds my head high.”

—Psalms 3:3 (NLT)

I could build a mountain with worries of today and concerns for tomorrow, but what a gift to know that we don’t have to carry one of them – that God broadens the sidewalk under our feet so our ankles don’t turn.

I highlighted this verse last week in The Message version:

“Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”

—Matthew 6:34 (MSG)

A good reminder with permission to let it all go in the middle of the busy.

Maybe you need this today, too.