Put on your shoes
Through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.
2 Timothy 3:17 MSG
We had an 8am dentist appointment this morning. We were moving slow, but everyone had made it downstairs, eaten something, changed clothes and brushed teeth.
When asked if they were ready to go, 4 of 4 daughters claimed to be "ready to walk out the door." However, only 2 of those 4 daughters turned out to have anything on their feet.
If you’re a parent, I’m sure you’ve given a similar response: “Just put on your shoes!”
I'm sure you've only spoken those words in quiet gentleness. But of course I say this with a big huff of impatience, some drawn out sarcasm, plenty of physical cues to my annoyance. Because of course they can't leave in bare feet! It's a pretty important and basic detail in "being ready." Once we made it to the dentist office and I replayed the exit from the house in my head, I started wondering if I was ready. I mean, not literally. I did have my shoes on, but I'm talking about if I'm ready to go where God wants to send me. I've told him I am ready. I've told him He needs to just point me in the next right direction and I'll go! And I wonder how often God has had to stand patiently at the door, waiting for me to find my shoes after I've claimed to be ready to walk out the door. I wonder if He's standing there now. Maybe a gentle smile on his face as he waits for me to stop scrambling. Tomorrow's the first day of school. I'm going to try to be a lot more patient when the time comes to head out the door only to find someone's still in bare feet. I'll look down at my own shoed feet and think about how I can be ready to follow God's next call. How are you trying to be ready?
Someone's shoes, November 2014.
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