Tough Old Boots

“You need to understand that my wife is as tough as old boots” my husband was saying to the doctor examining my ankle at the emergency department of our local hospital. Being compared to a red rose might have been nicer! But perhaps it was because I was underplaying the pain. I looked at the muddy walking boot still on my other (good) foot, my muddy trousers and wished I was a bit more presentable. Instead I was sweaty, grubby, shivering from shock and wondering whether a day’s walking on the fells really was a healthy activity.

In the weeks of recovery from a nasty sprain, still not quite able to fit my swollen foot into my boots, the power of those words stayed with me. My walking boots are tough, old - and still muddy. I forget what colour they were when they were new. But they are very comfortable, well-broken in to fit my feet and have trudged many miles. At this stage in their existence they would not be comfortable for anybody else’s feet; only mine.

Just as my old boots are now only suitable for my feet, God’s path for my life is only for me and no one else. Nobody else can do the tasks God has set for me, nobody else can have the particular relationships I have with others and with Him, and nobody else can walk my path. My destiny and yours are each unique. It is astonishing that a girl like Esther in the Bible could save her people from annihilation, and that God had chosen her with the circumstances around her for ‘such a time as this’. I believe it is the same for us. We are all here for God to use us, and maybe no one else, for His divine purposes. It may be a life event, a major decision to take, an illness to bear, a neighbour to visit, a child to comfort or a smile to give… Have we got our boots laced up and are we ready to go, whatever it takes?

Prayer: Thank You, Heavenly Father, that You trust me enough to give me a path and a destiny that is unique and individual only to me. Help me to see it, to choose it, and to walk it courageously. If I go off-course, stray or fall, give me the humility to come back to You. May I fulfil Your purposes for Your Kingdom, in Jesus’ name, Amen.