Beautiful Feet

Romans 10:15b
"How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!"


I had an amazing experience this Easter weekend, going out with The Magdalene Project, which is a ministry that reaches out to women that most churches would simply overlook - prostitutes, homeless, women in prison, women who are in abuse shelters, etc. While most of us prepared for Easter, with our new Easter clothes, and pretty little baskets for our children full of yummy sweets and toys, these women were simply hoping to get through another day.

I had the distinct privilege of going with a group of women to the men’s clubs (strip clubs) to give beautiful Easter bags to the dancers and other women working in those clubs. The women were so appreciative - many are searching and God is moving in their lives, some said they hadn’t received a gift of any sort in years, and almost all of them couldn’t believe that we would give them a gift with no strings attached. We got smiles and hugs, and even some names and phone numbers for follow-up. It was a long, but fruitful night, and when I got home at 1 a.m. the first thing I did was remove the high-heeled boots I had been wearing all night, to find my feet swollen (as much as they could be having been crammed in the boots all night), and marked from my socks. I guess that’s why they tell you not to wear heels in the later part of pregnancy. They were quite unsightly and very sore. As I sat staring at my feet, Romans 10:15 came to me - "How beautiful are the feet . . ." My feet were hardly beautiful, and yet to those women who received gifts, love, acceptance, and hopefully a little light, I would imagine that my "feet," along with the "feet" of every other woman who reached out that night were the most beautiful thing they had seen for a long time, in a life otherwise dreary and dark. God did an amazing work, and will continue to, through the feet of those who are willing to cross the threshold of these places.

Sometimes I think that when we read this verse we automatically think of people in third-world countries, and start considering how we should do mission trips and pray for our missionaries. Now, not that those things aren’t important - I would imagine that seeing how other parts of the world live would do much in bringing us to a place of great contentment, although, I would argue that we really don’t even need to look that far to see those less fortunate, either. And obviously, praying for our missionaries is of great import. However, I think we always tend to overlook the fact that there are "dark jungles" right here in our own backyards. Places where Satan feels comfortable, because few are willing to take the light of Christ into such a place. We need not travel thousands of miles to do a mission trip - a little trip down to our local rescue mission could qualify just the same, doesn’t take near as much time, and can reap as much of a blessing and reward.

We don’t all have to go to men’s clubs, or prisons, or to the prostitutes, but I think we should all remember who it was that Christ came for - the lost and the broken. So, if we’re found and fixed, so-to-speak, then we need to reach out for those who are not. Ask God about some area locally that you could serve him, and see how He responds - perhaps it is your neighbor, or another parent at your child’s school. Could be the check-out lady at your grocery store, or someone you’ve met at the gym. Regardless of who or where, there is someone out there just waiting for our beautiful feet to bring them the good news of Christ!