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The Other Shoe, 02FEB

I felt good today until I realized that I made mistakes today, and this week – they were not earth shattering, but stupid enough – mistakes from rushing and other moments of ugh…

I write now because my mistakes meant that I learned more insight into my faith and a reminder of why my humanness, everyone’s humanness really needs Jesus as our healer, the forgiver, the divine…

“To forgive is divine.”

After my realization of my mistakes, a friend comforted me by saying: to forgive is divine. I said “It’s hardest to forgive oneself…”

And yeah, then I realized I need forgiveness for that statement too… because the basic fact that I can’t actually give myself forgiveness, I can only be the one to ask… yup… Forgiveness is a divine gift as well as a directive.

Forgiveness is divine not human in origin…. yup… we are to forgive but give credit where credit is due…

Forgiveness of human self is the message of Jesus’s reconciliation…

Not forgiving myself is forgoing the mercy Jesus desperately wants to give… I need Jesus… and I can be grateful that I even realized that I went wrong today… humbled by my humanness… grateful that I can try to make amends… blessed that Jesus paused to say “i don’t condemn you, but you realize what you did, right?”

Such insight can be gained from sleepless nights… “maybe a thousand sleepless nights is what it takes to know You’re near…” the song lyric resonates (“Blessings” from Laura Story)…

My missteps were the result of rushing, trying to do the right thing, but I stumbled. Tripping over myself for trying too hard… maybe someday I am going to be grateful for this trial… or forget it all together… yet right now I feel humbled…

See, it is important to know that God does not “drop the other shoe” in our bubble-bursting moments – the “other shoe” is for us to put on and walk with Christ in our humbled humanness… and then to reach for forgiveness… “if the shoe fits…”

We have 2 shoes – JOY and HUMBLENESS – we have to put BOTH shoes on to keep walking…

Even IF I wanted to stop living in joy, because of my sadness, I have to keep walking, stepping out to serve the Lord in Joy.

Even IF I wanted to ignore my humanness, and go back to spreading wonderful joy, I cannot ignore how very human I am – and therefore I have to keep walking, stepping out to serve the Lord in humbleness.

If “the other shoe” fits… it’s because God dropped it in front of us so that we put it on and keep walking in His narrow but sure path…

These steps are for you and you alone (but not alone, we walk WITH the Lord)…

The shoe fits…

Jesus carries the day…

Thank You Jesus…

Amen

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He has shown you, O mortal, what is good.
And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy
and to walk humbly with your God. Micah 6:8

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NOTE: now that I have had some time to reflect on those issues – they seem so small in comparison to life – and I have to say that to walk humbly with the Lord means that we ALSO have to put our own issues into perspective and not make a mountain out of a molehill! in other words, keep walking and don’t let your perceived problems overtake the problems of the world – don’t ignore issues but don’t dwell on them in a selfish way – let them go and get back to the Lord’s work…