The hills of Northern Spain remind me of the Ozarks where I grew up. Perhaps that’s one reason I love walking the Camino de Santiago. The route rises and falls through hills covered in forests and dotted with farms. This countryside is one reason pilgrims adopted Psalm 121 as the Pilgrim’s Psalm:

I will raise my eyes to the hills; From where will my help come? My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth. He will not allow your foot to slip; He who watches over you will not slumber. Behold, He who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord is your protector; The Lord is your shade on your right hand. The sun will not beat down on you by day, nor the moon by night. The Lord will protect you from all evil; He will keep your soul. The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time and forever.

A thousand years of pilgrims walked to Santiago through the elements, under the sun, with uncertain conditions and among strange peoples. Many persevered for months on their journey. I’m walking for a week, but still under a hot sun or through cool rain as I trudge up and down these Spanish hills.

Like I meander on this trek, I also wander through life. In the midst, the Lord keeps my feet steady. He remains my keeper, my shade, my bodyguard, and the giver of life. I raise my eyes to the hills, knowing that my help comes from the maker of all such heights, from our magnificent God who neither slumbers nor sleeps.

Psalm 121

Misty hills along the Camino. Photo by former pilgrim Matt Jackson