The road is long, with many a winding turn, that leads us to who knows where, who knows where….

I was reminded of this opening line from the song, "He Ain't Heavy, He's My Brother," by today's first reading. The prophet Elijah is so weary from his journey through the desert that he asks God to end his suffering. "This is enough, O Lord!" Elijah says. "Take my life, for I am no better than my fathers."

But God does not answer Elijah's prayer - or at least, God doesn't give Elijah what he asked for. An angel brings him some bread and says "Get up and eat, else the journey will be too long for you!"

But I'm strong, strong enough to carry him. He ain't heavy, he's my brother.

Many years ago, when I was struggling to find direction in my life, a friend invited me to come and live with him. I didn't have any money. I didn't have a job. I didn't know what to do. My friend didn't give advice or require anything but that I contribute to household responsibilities. It was an act of grace and generosity that marked the beginning for me of believing in a brighter future.

These are heavy times, and many of us may see only a long, long journey ahead. If you've lost your job, your home, your savings or your hope, it can be tempting to give up. It can be especially tempting to give up in our society that teaches self-reliance as one of its highest virtues. Being in a state of need, depleted of all resources, may seem too humiliated to bear. And asking for or accepting help from someone else may feel unthinkable.

But Elijah, we're told, got up. "He got up, ate and drank; then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb."

Fortunately, God does not give up, and brings us refreshment and encouragement - food for physical strength and motivation to get up and continue the journey. It may be that God comes to us when we are most discouraged, and has to urge us two or three times to move forward.

It can be a wonderfully liberating experience to find that we are not alone in our need, and that God has the resources and desires to help us complete the journeys that we've started. Maybe that's part of the mystery of faith - that we must be dependent on God in order to fully experience God's love and compassion, and then ultimately be free from insecurity about our own lack of resources.

God may come to us through an angel who encourages us to get up and eat. God may come to us through a brother who has decided that we're not too heavy to carry for a little while. The good news is that God will come to us. The road may indeed be long and appear endless, but we're not too heavy for God.

Bill Peatman writes from Napa. He may be reached at bptidings@yahoo.com.