My Flippin’ Toe Hurts

So I’ve got these really cool shoes…you might have seen them…they are orange and purple and have “Pastor P” on the back. I custom designed them off of Nike’s website…I figured if I was going to run a marathon then I was going to run it in style!

So a few weeks ago we had a 12 or 13 mile run on a Saturday. (Trust me—there is not a big difference in 12 or 13 miles!) And so for that run I wore my styling shoes. The run was a good one and I felt pretty good—I came home, cleaned up, destroyed some food and took a nap.

However, that night as I was looking at my feet I noticed I had a black toenail. Trust me when I say that my feet are gross to look at without the toenail of death staring back at me—but now it sort of freaks me out.

I was racking my brain trying to figure out why my toe had changed colors…until an experienced runner told me, “Dude, your shoes are too small…you need to go up a size.”

“NO WAY,” I thought, “these shoes are cool…I paid good money for these shoes.” So I ignored the advice and did another long run in them recently. NOW I actually have two toes that are black. I guess the shoes do not fit after all.

So…now I am on a mission to find shoes that fit. I have finally accepted that when you run with shoes that fit you are more likely to enjoy the race.

Believe it or not—this has spiritual significance.

You see—if you are a follower of Jesus Christ, then, according to Scripture you have at least one spiritual gift…in other words, there is a perfect “fit” for you spiritually in God’s plan.

I think one of the most prevalant problems among the Christian community is that people accept that God has a plan for other people’s lives…but not theirs. However, one of the things I am continuing to discover is that God does not ever have to say “oops,” in other words, He does not make mistakes…and if you are here on this big ball of dirt we call earth then God has a plan for your life…and that plan is a perfect fit.

I meet so many frustrated people in life—and by far the most frustrated, miserable people are the ones that refuse to embrace God’s plan for their life because they are so busy trying to get Him to embrace their own plan. But you need to understand that if you try a plan that does not fit…something (or someone) is going to get hurt.

I laughed at an e-mail a mother sent me today, she said she was talking to her child (who is six) about what she wants to do when she grows up—the girl replied, “either a veterinarian, a doctor, or to work at NewSpring!” I think that’s awesome!!! This little girl is about getting in on God’s plan! :-)

The one thing you need to keep in mind is that God’s plan is not something that is necessarily going to make you miserable…it will be something you do well and something you enjoy as well.

I am going to get new shoes…I want to run the race the best that I can. As Christians we are called to run the race to the best of our abilities…and to do so we need a plan that fits. If you are unsure where to begin then I would encourage you to begin to volunteer somewhere in your church…if you come to NewSpring then call our office and we will find a spot for you. If you do not attend NewSpring then call your church office and tell them you want to volunteer in the church and that you will do anything…you will make your pastor’s day!

Oh yeah, in a totally unrelated subject—Lucretia’s chocolate chip pound cake was AWESOME last night…I plan to consume the rest tonight!