Where Else Would I Go – still choosing to Walk with Jesus.

Walking with Jesus

Where Else Would I Go?

Pastor Calvin Cook

August 27, 2026 — Day 33 of 40

“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”— John 6:68

The topic of why we should walk with Jesus recently came up.

Why Jesus? Why follow Him? Why keep walking with Him?

I suppose we are either in a place where we have an answer to that question, or we don’t.

And today I don’t want to answer it like a pastor preaching a sermon. I want to answer it as someone who has fallen away before. Someone who deals with everyday life—the good and the bad. Someone who sometimes struggles to make sense of it all. Someone who has words and questions circling around in his heart that nobody else hears.

I want to answer as someone who has been tempted to search after other things, to walk away, to give up, throw up my hands and simply say, Whatever.

Maybe you know that place too.

If any of that describes where you are today, let me simply tell you why I keep walking with Jesus.

Yes, I believe Jesus is Lord and Savior. I believe in the promise of eternal life. But there is something I have discovered in the here and now. Following Jesus and remaining in His presence is the only place I have found that brings real peace to my mind, heart, and soul ! Jesus is the only shelter I have found that holds when the storms really start blowing.

There are times when I have to intentionally leave the noise, the problems, the pain, the grief, the responsibilities and everything I am trying to figure out and simply sit at the feet of Jesus.

Sometimes I don’t need another answer. I just need Jesus. I need to sit in His presence long enough to remember: He’s got this. That is one reason I walk with Jesus.

Following Jesus has also become much more than a once-a-week routine for me. I need Him every day. I need time in prayer. I need Scripture. I need those quiet moments of meditation. But increasingly, I realize how much I need to simply listen.

Holy Spirit, what are You saying?

Where are You leading?

What do I need to let go of?

What do I need to do?

Who are You asking me to become?

Following Jesus gives my life a compass. His teachings continually call me back to what God created me to be. They call me toward love, holiness, mercy, truth, forgiveness, faithfulness, compassion and obedience.

But following Jesus cannot remain a theory. It cannot just be something I learned in Sunday school or something I preach on Sunday morning. It has to become a lifestyle.

Jesus said: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me.” — Luke 9:23

Daily. And some days, that is hard.

There are days when the world seems to come against everything I am trying to do. There are moments when circumstances, disappointment, temptation, fear and frustration can send my thoughts spiraling in directions I don’t want them to go.

Those are often the moments when I have learned not to run from Jesus but to run to Jesus. To sit with Him. To listen. To remember who He is.

John 6 tells us about a time when many people stopped following Jesus. They decided His teaching was too difficult, and they walked away.

Jesus turned to the Twelve and asked: “You do not want to leave too, do you?” — John 6:67

Peter answered: “Lord, to whom shall we go?”

That question gets me. Where else would I go? I have tried walking my own way. I have tried carrying things myself. I have worried. I have struggled. I have searched for answers. I have tried figuring everything out. And still do.

And after everything I have experienced, I keep coming back to the same place: Jesus.

As a pastor, yes. As a disciple, yes. But mostly as a plain, ordinary person whom Jesus met where I was and continues to meet me where I am.

That’s why I keep walking with Jesus. God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is really the only stable thing that is not affected by time, trust, circumstances, popularity, that I have in my life. If you would be honest with yourself it is the same for you.

Years ago, I used to end sermons and teachings with a simple thought that became something of an evangelism message for me: Regardless of who you are, where you have been, where you are now, or what has happened in your life—today can be a new day.

I still believe that.

Maybe that’s one of the greatest reasons I keep walking with Jesus.

Because with Jesus, yesterday doesn’t have to determine today.

Failure doesn’t have to have the last word. The storm doesn’t get to decide where the journey ends. And even when I wander, I can turn around and discover that Jesus is still there. So if you’re asking today, Why should I follow Jesus?

I can only tell you what I have found to be true: Where else would I go? He has met me in too many storms. He has given me peace in too many difficult places. He has picked me up too many times. He has spoken into my heart when I couldn’t hear anything else.

And I have decided that whatever comes, I want to stay close enough to hear His voice and faithful enough to keep taking the next step.

Until next time, let’s just keep walking with Jesus.