New Shoes
By Caron Cline
Burke County
The Advent season with its hustle and bustle, parties and presents has passed. Hopefully, it has been a time of renewed devotion to the Christ child Who entered time and space for the express purpose of offering Himself as a sacrifice for the sins of the world. He came to seek and to save the lost and His mission will continue, through His people, until time, as we know it, is no more. As we enter a new year, our Savior, our Bridegroom, once again renews our call to walk in faith and victory despite the violent turbulence that threatens to overwhelm and paralyze our lives through fear, manipulation, and intimidation. We are commanded to stand firm in the power of our Father’s might and to walk in a manner worthy of this awesome calling. Many have been steered off the ancient paths of God’s principles by false teachings and deceptive philosophies. The paths of this present world system are littered with broken dreams, mental anguish, and bitterness of heart. Walking these paths will produce an overall spirit of oppression and rejection. Even those who call themselves Christians sometimes find themselves on these dead-end paths. Their garments are tattered, and the soles of their shoes are worn thin. It is time to stop, recalculate, put on the new shoes of the gospel, and return to the highway of holiness. God gifts each of His children with specific callings according to their measure of faith. However, every follower of Christ has been endowed with the divine nature from the moment of salvation and is responsible for exhibiting His characteristics in a dark and lonely world. Three of those traits are of the utmost importance, wisdom, grace, and love. We have in our possession the living, breathing word of God. We have in our spirit, the living, breathing word of God (Christ, in the form of the Holy Spirit).
Colossians 2:2b,3 “…a true knowledge of God’s mystery, that is, Christ Himself, in Whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge”.
We know things that can break chains of addiction, bitterness, fear, etc. We know things that can break generational strongholds. We know things that can change eternal destinies. We invest in the lives of others by walking out the truths of God’s Word and sharing His wisdom with them concerning their issues. Secondly, we invest in the lives of others by walking in grace toward the problems and issues in their lives. We abandon the self-righteous judgmental thoughts and words that are part of human nature and allow the grace of God to overflow, offering undeserved favor and encouragement. We also invest by testifying to the power of God’s grace which brought deliverance from our own struggles and weaknesses. Lastly, we invest in the lives of others by walking in divine love toward one another even amid our own issues as brothers and sisters in Christ. Only our Lord could perform such a miracle between such a wide variety of people with such different backgrounds and with such different opinions. Our testimony of unity and love is proof positive that God’s love can perform the same miracle in others.
As we lace up our new shoes and begin walking in divine wisdom, grace, and love, others will join this journey for the furtherance of the Kingdom of God and the destruction of the kingdom of darkness. Rise up and walk!
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Caron is a follower of Jesus Christ and a member of Pleasant Hill Baptist Church in Morganton, NC. She loves to teach the word of God.
Her desire is to see every believer grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord.
You can read more Christian News from Caron HERE.
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