"He that believes, does not make haste, but waits patiently till the times of refreshment come, and dares trust God for the morrow, and is no more solicitous for the next year than he is for that which is past;
and it is certain that man wants faith who dares be more confident of being supplied when he has money in his purse, than when he has it only in bills of exchange from God; or that relies more upon his own industry than upon God's providence when his own industry fails him.
If you dare trust to God when the case, to human reason, seems impossible, and trust to God then also out of choice, not because you have nothing else to trust to, but because he is the only support of a just confidence, then you give a good testimony of your faith."
"Therefore thus says the Lord God: 'Behold, I lay in Zion a stone for a foundation, a tried stone, a precious cornerstone, a sure foundation; whoever believes will not act hastily.'"
"C'est pourquoi ainsi parle le Seigneur, l'Éternel: Voici, j'ai mis pour fondement en Sion une pierre, une pierre éprouvée, une pierre angulaire de prix, solidement posée; celui qui la prendra pour appui n'aura point hâte de fuir."
Ésaïe 28:16 · Louis Segond✦ Does Not Make Haste
Taylor echoes Isaiah: whoever believes will not act hastily. The French says n'aura point hâte de fuir — will not be in haste to flee. The believer does not panic. The believer does not rush. The foundation is sure — a tried stone, a precious cornerstone — and the one who rests on it has no need to run.
Le and Roger — selling the apartment, selling the car, driving through Spain, crossing into France, arriving in Normandy — not making haste. Not fleeing. Walking. Patiently. Trusting God for the morrow. The foundation held through every mile. 🙏
✦ Bills of Exchange from God
Taylor's image is remarkable: the man who is more confident with money in his purse than with bills of exchange from God — that man wants faith. A bill of exchange is a promise — written, signed, guaranteed by the issuer. God's promises are bills of exchange. The signature is His character. The guarantee is His faithfulness.
The world trusts what it can see — the purse, the bank, the contract. The pilgrim trusts what cannot be seen — the promise. Hebrews 11:1 — faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. Le and Roger cashed the bills of exchange through every stage of the transition — and every bill was honored. The apartment sold. The car sold. The road opened. France arrived. 🙏
✦ Trust Out of Choice — Not Desperation
Taylor's sharpest test: trust to God when the case seems impossible — and trust out of choice, not because you have nothing else to trust to. This is the difference between faith and desperation. The desperate person trusts God because all other options are gone. The faithful person trusts God because He is the only support of a just confidence — even when other options exist.
Le's word from August 22: faith is not just what you feel — it is what you say. And Taylor today: faith is not just what you fall back on — it is what you choose. The choosing is the testimony. The choosing when other options exist — that is the good testimony of faith. 🙏
"True faith is confident, and will venture all the world upon the strength of its persuasion. Will you lay your life on it, your estate, your reputation, that the doctrine of Jesus Christ is true in every article? Then you have true faith. But he that fears men more than God, believes men more than he believes in God."
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen... But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him."
"Or la foi est une ferme assurance des choses qu'on espère, une démonstration de celles qu'on ne voit pas... Or sans la foi il est impossible de lui être agréable; car il faut que celui qui s'approche de Dieu croie que Dieu existe, et qu'il est le rémunérateur de ceux qui le cherchent."
Hébreux 11:1, 6 · Louis Segond✦ Will You Lay Your Life On It?
Taylor asks the question that admits no evasion: will you lay your life on it, your estate, your reputation? Le and Roger laid their apartment on it. Their car on it. Their country on it. Their entire life on the road — on the strength of the persuasion that God directs the steps.
Le's divine connector from July 12: faith is my divine connector to pleasing God. Hebrews 11:6 — without faith it is impossible to please Him. The French says il est le rémunérateur de ceux qui le cherchent — He is the rewarder of those who seek Him. The seeking is the venture. The reward is the Seeker's God.
He that fears men more than God, believes men more than he believes in God. The pilgrim who trusts God's bill of exchange over the world's currency — that pilgrim believes God more than men. And that is true faith. 🙏
"Faith, if it be true, living, and justifying, cannot be separated from a good life; it works miracles, makes a drunkard become sober, a lascivious person become chaste, a covetous man become liberal; 'it overcomes the world,' it 'works righteousness,' and makes us diligently to do, and cheerfully to suffer, whatsoever God has placed in our way to heaven."
"For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith."
"Parce que tout ce qui est né de Dieu triomphe du monde; et la victoire qui triomphe du monde, c'est notre foi."
1 Jean 5:4 · Louis Segond✦ Diligently to Do — Cheerfully to Suffer
Taylor's final words are the summary of the journal's entire journey: diligently to do, and cheerfully to suffer, whatsoever God has placed in our way to heaven.
Diligently to do — the dishes from Rouquette. The packing from Caldas. The chapter a day. The coffee with Roger. The moment of God. Le's blessed nature that cannot sit still. The doing is diligent — not because it is forced but because the faith behind it is living.
Cheerfully to suffer — the transition. The not-yet-understanding. The leaving of Caldas. The road through Spain. The new country, the new language, the unknown ahead. All suffered cheerfully — because the faith holds, and the One who holds the faith does not let go.
The French says la victoire qui triomphe du monde, c'est notre foi — the victory that triumphs over the world is our faith. The victory is not the arrival in Normandy. The victory is the faith that walked patiently all the way there. 🙏
We are walking patiently. 🙏
✦ Walking Patiently — From Caldas to Normandy
Four words. The whole passage. The whole transition. The whole journal.
Taylor said: he that believes does not make haste. Le says: we are walking patiently. The same truth — from a 17th-century bishop and a 21st-century pilgrim, both in exile, both trusting God for the morrow, both arriving where the road was directed.
Le and Roger did not make haste. They walked. From Caldas da Rainha to Pedreiras. From Pedreiras to Salamanca. From Salamanca to Saint-Paul-lès-Dax. From Rouquette to Jarnac-Champagne. And now — Lion-sur-Mer, Normandy. The coast. The north. The patient walk that did not panic, did not rush, did not flee — and arrived. 🙏
"We are walking patiently."
Le · Lion-sur-Mer · The believer does not make haste · Bills of exchange from God · NormandyWalking Patiently
He that believes does not make haste. Waits patiently. Trusts God for the morrow. From Caldas to Normandy — not rushing, not fleeing. Walking.
Bills of Exchange
God's promises are bills of exchange — signed by His character, guaranteed by His faithfulness. The pilgrim trusts the promise over the purse. Every bill was honored.
The Victory Is the Faith
Diligently to do. Cheerfully to suffer. True faith cannot be separated from a good life. The victory that overcomes the world is our faith — not the arrival, but the walking.
Jeremy Taylor on faith. And Le's four-word summary from the Norman coast.
The journal's faith arc — complete: July 12 — faith is my divine connector. August 2 — all things possible with God. August 3 — believe that you receive. August 7 — love is a choice, not a feeling. August 22 — faith is not just what you feel, it is what you say. And now September 13 — Taylor: true faith is confident, and will venture all the world upon the strength of its persuasion. The arc moves from connector to conviction to venture — and Le and Roger have ventured all.
Bills of exchange: Taylor's image is the financial language of faith. The promise is the bill. The character of God is the signature. The faithfulness of God is the guarantee. Le and Roger cashed every bill. The apartment — bill honored. The car — bill honored. The road — bill honored. France — bill honored. Normandy — bill honored. Not one bill returned unpaid.
Trust out of choice: Taylor's sharpest distinction — trusting God out of choice, not because nothing else remains. Le and Roger had options. They chose the promise. The choosing is the testimony. And the testimony is written across the map of Europe — from Caldas to Lion-sur-Mer.
Diligently and cheerfully: Taylor's twin adverbs are Le's twin practices. The doing is diligent — the dishes, the packing, the chapter a day, the Word over coffee. The suffering is cheerful — the transition, the unknown, the not-yet-understanding. Both are sustained by the same faith — true, living, justifying.
Walking patiently: We are walking patiently. Four words from the Norman coast. Taylor wrote paragraphs. Le wrote four words. And the four words are the paragraphs lived. The believer does not make haste. The pilgrim walks. And the walk arrives — in God's timing, on God's road, at God's destination. Lion-sur-Mer. Normandy. The patient walk continues. 🙏