The Shoes

I woke up thinking about a pair of shoes:

Imagine walking into a shoe store. It's very well lit. You look around and see lots and lots of nice looking shoes all lined up. You start perusing and find a few pairs that strike your fancy. Just then God shifts your focus to the corner of the store where it isn't very well lit. You look over and notice that there is a light shining on a pair of shoes that are relatively formless and grey. You go over to examine them closer and notice that these shoes are made of stone. They aren't even smoothed out... they are two giant pieces of grey stone with a hole where your foot goes in them. At first glance you want to turn away and go back to the other shoes... but something keeps you there considering them.

As you are standing there, you remember that GOD shifted your focus to the corner. You have a sense that those shoes were made just for you. There's only one size there and they happen to be YOUR size. If you have eyes to see and ears to hear, you know that God showed you those shoes and if you are obedient and trust God, then you know that those are from Him for you and the shoes that you MUST get.

So- here ya go. These formless, heavy shoes are to be YOUR new shoes- given to you by God Himself.

Really, you SHOULD be grateful. The One True God, our Holy Father in heaven above just gave you a new pair of shoes! Still, a part of you wants to say "GOD? LOOK! There are SO MANY BEAUTIFUL shoes all around here- and LOOK! Some are on SALE! These big stone shoes are marked UP in price! I want one of these other pairs that will be comfortable and look good on me!" But God doesn't change His mind... He simply waits for you to purchase the shoes He had specially made for you (though you don't understand that yet). 

As you are going through this exercise, what isn't apparent to you at first is the fact that when you wear those shoes (which are clunky and heavy) your legs are STRENGTHENED.

And as you wear them, as you stumble and scrape your toes along the pavement and rocky roads that you walk along, the shoes are worn down... the rough edges are chipped away. EVENTUALLY they will get to a point where what is INSIDE the is revealed... as the stone is rubbed down and the grey bulk falls off, you see that what is inside is DIAMOND.

Perfect, spotless, diamond.

So someday these shoes will be beautiful shoes AND YOU will have strong legs! Sweet!

The caveat is that you've gotta TRUST GOD and invest in the stone shoes out of obedience in order to be eligible for the prize/ transformation/ diamond shoes. Hm. This applies in so many ways. I like this. THANK YOU LORD for teaching and telling me about this today! GREAT story! I love you Father!!


<3