Day 8: Choosing to Walk, Even When You Don't Feel Like It
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The other day, I went for a walk down the local creek. It was nice… I guess. But honestly, I didn’t feel like it. I wanted to stay home and watch Netflix.
But everyone in my world keeps going on about the benefits of physical health.
I don’t know if it’s my jiggly belly or my diminishing muscle mass, but people keep recommending exercise to me all the flipping time.
I don’t like exercise. I don’t even like the feel of sweating. But deep down, I know they’re right.
If I don’t make some changes, I’m not going to get any better.
And the truth is, I don’t feel amazing after one walk or one good sleep or one healthy meal.
But my prayer is that the cumulative effect of doing the things that are proven to help will eventually pay off in my favour.
Let’s Talk
You’re one week in. And if you’re like me, the excitement of starting something new might be wearing off.
Maybe the daily practices haven’t felt particularly profound. Maybe you’re tired. Maybe you’re wondering if this whole thing is actually doing anything at all.
That’s normal. This is the dip — the point where most people stop showing up.
It’s the same with exercise. You go for a walk or two, eat a salad, get some sleep — and your brain still feels foggy, your anxiety still hums in the background, and nothing feels fixed.
This is the moment that matters most, because the first week is about trying — this second week is about choosing.
Choosing to keep going, not because you feel like it, but because something deeper in you wants to grow, to change, to heal — even if it’s slow.
Faith, like health, often shifts beneath the surface before it breaks through to the surface.
Scripture
“Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
— Galatians 6:9 (NIV)
This verse is often quoted to inspire perseverance — but it’s not about grinding it out through willpower. It’s about trusting that small, faithful steps matter, even when they don’t feel effective in the moment.
Tim Keller once wrote,
“You are not accepted because you are strong. You are strong because you are accepted.”
This kind of strength isn’t flashy — it’s quiet, often invisible, and formed in the small, daily acts of faithfulness: showing up to pray, reaching out to a friend, finishing today’s devotional when you’d rather skip it.
Galatians 6:9 reminds us: God sees the effort others don’t.
And He promises that — in the right time — your persistence will bear fruit.
So don’t let the slow pace convince you it’s not working.
Sometimes growth looks like simply not giving up.
Mental Health Moment
Your brain builds resilience through repetition. Not once, not twice — but through consistent, grace-filled steps in the same direction.
You don’t need a breakthrough today.
You just need the courage to keep going.
And if that looks like dragging yourself through this devotional with your eyes half closed and your coffee in hand — that’s still movement.
Practice for Today
Choose to do one thing today that says:
“I’m still in this.”
It doesn’t need to be big.
Just a small, stubborn act moving you forward.
Write this somewhere visible:
“It matters that I’m still here.”
A Prayer for the One Who Wants to Quit
Jesus,
Life is sometimes harder than I thought it would be.
I’m showing up, but I’m tired. I don’t feel different yet.
Give me the desire to keep going.
Remind me that small steps matter, even if I can’t see the results yet.
Walk with me into week two — and help me not to walk away.
Amen.
Reflection Prompt
What did you expect to feel by now?
What would it look like to keep going, even without that feeling?
