Humbling Shoes.

People without children always seem to have the best parenting advice.
Two people engaged or freshly wed seem to have all the answers to a flawless marriage.
The best financial advice is usually given by well off people who have all they need.

{In case you're not catching my sarcasm....those first few sentences are heavily coated with it...wink}

It's so easy to offer our wisdom to others. Soooo, so easy.
Especially when we haven't experienced what we know (or think we know) so much about.

This past year I have been humbled. Having my own "wise advice" come back to haunt me.
Subjects I shelled out my self righteous wisdom upon...thoughts I had about things and kept to myself...
some of those situations... I have gotten to experience first hand. :)

God slipped my feet into the same shoes the people I offered my "helpful" advice to once wore.
Then He had me go for a walk. A walk in their shoes.

I thought certainly I was only going for a short jaunt in this not so nice neighborhood I was now in....
Oh No...we (God and I) went for a long walk. He took me miles.
I was stubborn at first...dragged my feet. Denied this course of action was for me.

But with God in charge, I had no choice.
So I walked. I whined. I complained. I felt bad for myself. Really bad at times.
I had blisters. My legs were sore, my feet were sore, my head hurt...I was miserable.

I wondered where He was taking me.
Sometimes I felt like He wasn't listening when I talked to Him. Sometimes I felt like He left me.

"Why?" I cried out to Him ..."I walk where life is pretty. life is grand. peaceful. comfortable."

That was the problem. My life was comfortable. Too comfortable.
I was also pretty high on myself. and the way I lived. and the things I had.
and it was nothing I had done..it was all blessings from God I gave myself the credit for!

Yep. I was comfortably bragging about my blessed life.
You know what happens when one of God's children boasts and gets too comfy?
He takes us on a walk. and not through Central Park on a sunny day. Yikes!

God knew I needed pressure applied. I needed that stretching and pulling.
So I had no other choice but to seek Him. So seeking is what I did.

I needed to surrender. I needed to give it all to God. So much easier said than done!
But once I did, once I really, really did...well, THEN I saw!

Looking back down that road, I see His hand in SO much of my life.
He never left me. He never leaves us. Never.

When I couldn't find Him, I just wasn't looking in the right places!
I was looking where I wanted to look....in the areas of my life I thought He should be in.
Which was a lot different than where He was actually at. Where I needed to go.

There were things I needed to learn on that road.
Gratefulness. Obedience. Trust. Patience. Contentment...{Still working on this one}
In fact, still working on ALL of the above. I have a long. looong way to go.

So back to the humbling part I started out with....
I've learned that until we are in a situation, we don't know how we would respond.
To simplify...Keep My Mouth Shut! I know nothing.

It's easy from the outside, it's always easy from the outside.
The "I would never-s" and the "they should-s" fly out so easily...
like toys on shelves at Christmas time.

Once we're IN a situation we have a better understanding of why people handle things the way they do.
And you know what? We gain new perspective. We learn to have compassion.
I gained Compassion I didn't know I didn't have.

I've learned we need to be there for each other. Not with a harsh, judgmental spirit, but a loving one.
Shaming people. Comparing. Making someone feel less than us...that's just wrong.
Especially when we don't know how they are feeling.

I don't know anyone who finds comfort from a nose pointed upward and eyes looking down at them.
I've had it done to me and I've done it to others. I'm guilty of thinking I was better.
It's embarrassing to think back on those times. How rude I was.

If we as Christ followers are in this together, if we are family, then we need to be there for one another.
In the right way. Showing love. Showing compassion.

I am thankful for my walk..even though to be honest...I really didn't like it too much at the time.
I am thankful that He gave me listening ears and seeing eyes. (even if it had to be by force. ;)
I am also Scared To DEATH! to make any sort of judgment call on anyone! Ha!

I'm sure I'll be going on lots more walks throughout my life...and that's okay.
It's okay if that's what it takes to bring me closer to Him.
XxOo