Tuesday, August 2, 2016

Shoes We Were Made To Wear

A couple of weeks ago as I was praying, God gave me a wonderful vision.  I am always delighted when God unexpectedly shows up this way. I saw myself sitting on a bench in a beautiful garden, and Jesus bent down on one knee and placed on my feet very delicate and finely woven shoes made out of gold. He then looked up at me and said, "You were made to wear shoes of peace."

I have pondered those words ever since.  Certainly, inner peace is something I long for, that place of rest, as the Bible speaks of.  Joyce Meyers mentioned in one of her teachings that we do not need to seek peace or even ask for it, because Jesus lives in us and He is peace.  We ask for the peace to be released in us.  It is there, we just need to access this gift.

I also know the Bible defines shoes of peace as part of the full armor of God in Ephesians 6. Last April while reading and studying Rick Renner's book, "Dressed To Kill", I began to understand that when we are putting on the full armor of God to fight our battles with the enemy, the shoes we wear are very important.  In Roman times the shoes worn by those fighting in battle had long spikes on the soles that went deep into the ground, holding them upright as they fought. The soldiers were too vulnerable when falling down, so these shoes were used as an extension of their weaponry.  Paul defined the Word of God as another weapon because like the spikes, they provide us with a solid firm sense of peace in a battle.  We won't "fall down" and be vulnerable to the enemy, nor to the world when we wear shoes of peace.  The Gospel.

So it seems that reading the Word and staying grounded in it is what releases the peace we need.  It is easy to feel anxious or fearful in present times with so much tension and discourse palpable in the air, but when we encounter fear and the atmosphere of chaos and discourse, we can take a deep breath and remember what kind of shoes we wear! Our shoes are created from peace, and our peace comes from not only reading the Word, but relying on it and trusting that what it says is true. We remain calm in the promises of God.

Certainly, I was humbled by having Jesus put these shoes on my feet.  Such beautiful delicate but strong shoes, made from gold. The words He spoke to me I am declaring over myself on a daily basis.  I am not taking it lightly.  I was made for these shoes.  I was made to wear shoes of peace. We all are.  We.  all.  are.


1 comment:

Anita Johnson said...

I love this...I have been studying putting on the full armor of God....this is so very perfect.