REFLECTIONS FROM THE ROAD
Pages from a worn notebook under the glow of a campfire. Raw reflections from a struggling traveler learning that grace meets us in our weakness.
Author’s Note on Journal Entries: These writings are retrospective devotional memoirs reconstructed from authentic route logs, mileage trackers, and field reflections recorded during Brian Larwood’s 6,859.5 km solo journey. All Scripture citations are taken from the English Standard Version (ESV).
Nullarbor Plain • KM 1,100
I turned off the radio somewhere past Balladonia. Not because I wanted silence—because I was afraid of it. But the silence came anyway. And in it, I heard something I'd been drowning out for years.
“Be still, and know that I am God.”
— Psalm 46:10 (ESV)
WHAT THIS REVEALS ABOUT JESUS
Jesus withdrew to pray—He invites us to bring our noise to His quiet.
Prayer: Jesus, teach me to meet You in the silence.
90 Mile Straight • KM 950
146 kilometres without a single turn. At first it's boring. Then it's meditative. Then it becomes something else entirely—a lesson in trust. You can't see what's at the end. You just keep driving.
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding.”
— Proverbs 3:5 (ESV)
WHAT THIS REVEALS ABOUT JESUS
Jesus is trustworthy when we can’t see the end of the road.
Prayer: Jesus, help me trust Your lead when I can’t see the turn ahead.
Bunda Cliffs Campsite • KM 1,450
Lying on my back at 2am, I tried to count them. Gave up after a thousand. How small I am. How vast He is. And somehow, He knows my name.
“He determines the number of the stars; he gives to all of them their names.”
— Psalm 147:4 (ESV)
WHAT THIS REVEALS ABOUT JESUS
Jesus, the Creator-King, knows us by name and holds the galaxies.
Prayer: Jesus, thank You for knowing me fully and loving me completely.
Helena Valley to the Desert • KM 0
On July 16, 1988, lying flat on the floor in a burning house beneath choking black smoke, I prayed a desperate prayer: "God, save me and I will do whatever You want me to do." For decades, I thought that meant religious striving and trying to make myself worthy. It took thousands of kilometres of red dirt to realize that Jesus never demanded my perfection—He offered His finished grace.
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
— Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV)
WHAT THIS REVEALS ABOUT JESUS
Jesus does not ask us to climb out of the pit by our own strength. He entered our darkness to lift us out.
Prayer: Lord Jesus, forgive my striving. Thank You for saving me by grace alone.
MATTHEW 27:50–54 (ESV) • A 5-MINUTE OUTBACK DEVOTIONAL
THE SCRIPTURE TEXT • MATTHEW 27:50–54 (ESV)
“And Jesus cried out again with a loud voice and yielded up his spirit.
And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised...
When the centurion and those who were with him, keeping watch over Jesus, saw the earthquake and what took place, they were filled with awe and said, ‘Truly this was the Son of God!’”
In the temple, the veil was thick and towering. No human hand could tear it. God tore it from the top down, declaring the barrier between God and man destroyed forever.
You do not need a human priest, high ritual, or moral perfection to reach God. Christ opened the way straight to the Father for every weary traveler.
The Roman centurion had seen hundreds die, but seeing how Jesus gave His life made him confess: “Truly this was the Son of God.” Grace reaches even the hardened.
CAMPFIRE REFLECTION QUESTIONS FOR YOUR HEART
COMING SOON • EXPANDED PRINTABLE COURSES
We are authoring expanded, multi-week printable Bible study guides and self-paced scripture modules designed to accompany this journey. All field guides on Running to God are 100% free for anyone to download, print, and study at their own pace—whether around an outback campfire, at your kitchen table, or with a small study group.
The journal has many more entries. Stories of doubt, discovery, and the slow work of faith being rebuilt across 6,859.5 kilometres.