I'm not sure how old I was when my grandfather gave me the name, but I'm
beginning to believe his prophecy marked me.
I didn't grow up so
poor that I only had shoes in the winter and went shoeless the rest of
the time. But I did love to walk around barefooted as long as there were
no prickly weeds around.
My maternal grandparent's home had a
wraparound porch, but Pappy wasn't much on repairs so the boards were
often rough from wear and need of paint. All factors making it easy to
stump a toe.
Forty years later I still haven't learned to walk
without the occasional stump. Admittedly, our home is littered with
multiple pieces of furniture, yet the culprits are not the pieces that
sit close to my corridor but the ones that seem to be far off the beaten
path. So when I stump my toe, I wonder, "Now exactly how did I run into
that piece of furniture?" And since I weigh more now than when I was a
child, the force of the impact causes greater pain.
Unfortunately, furniture is not the only thing I've stumped my toe on.
I've bumped into anger, impatience, gossip, addictions, misplaced
priorities, idol worship, debt, disobedience, and a host of other random
pieces of furniture.
Though I walk straighter now than I once
did, occasionally my foot finds a place off the straight and narrow, and
God lets me stump my toe. He also allows me to feel some painful
consequences so I won't have the desire to walk there again.
Of
course the good news is in the verse. No matter how much I stump my toe,
God won't stop loving me. Nothing can separate me from his love.
When we make mistakes and Satan brings them before God in an attempt to
discredit our usability and identity, God always replies, "Evidence
inadmissible."
Prayer: Father, when the world's enticements cause
us to stump our toes, lead us back on track and remind us You will never
remove Your love.
Martin Wiles
mandmwiles@PROTECTED
Harleyville, South Carolina, USA
www.morningliteministry.com