Beautiful Feet
Oh, the Places You'll Go!
Feet aren’t usually considered beautiful, except maybe newborn feet. Often overlooked, our feet are essential to almost everything we do, because they take us any where we need to go. In this issue I contemplate our feet, their role in life’s journeys, and the trail they leave behind.
Note about the image: These are the feet of my newest grandchild taken 8 days after his birth.
My Mysterious Mind
Last week a perfectly beautiful little boy arrived, my fifth grandchild. From his head of dark hair to his tiny toes, he is amazing! As I marvel at his little feet, I find myself pondering my own feet, more than six decades older than his. Where will his little feet go throughout the course of his life? Where have my feet been during my life?
My daughter’s family welcomed my presence in their home for the first ten days of this baby-sized mystery being in their world. He joins two older brothers, ages 7 and 4. His arrival by c-section requires his mother to be limited during her recovery, especially her first week home. She cannot climb stairs more than a couple of times a day and isn’t allowed to carry anything that weighs more than her baby. All the bedrooms are upstairs, and the living and kitchen areas are on the first floor. Plus, she isn’t allowed to drive for a while.
Her dedicated husband is fully capable and available, but his work responsibilities are also a factor, despite paternity leave. My help, though not essential, allows the adjustment and recovery to go more smoothly. That’s where my feet come in!
The story of my feet this week is about a grandma putting in many steps all around the house, the yard, and the stairs. My feet also help drive the boys to school and day care and to pick them up after. Of course, I need the rest of my body to complete these tasks, but none would be possible without my feet.
And this one week is just a slice of my life, a life filled with countless steps to myriad places. I’ve walked in almost all fifty states (not Alaska and some of the little east coast ones). My feet have strolled in several places in Canada and Mexico, and in South Korea, including the DMZ. For work, I’ve walked multiple trips to and from offices and classes at three different universities. And on most Sunday mornings, my feet have brought the rest of me into church.
As I ponder the tiny feet of my newest grandchild, not yet able to walk, I wonder where his feet will go. His 4-year-old brother is eager to teach his baby brother how to walk, an objective articulated immediately after his brother’s birth. It is now clear to the eager preschooler that there are many other “steps” before baby brother’s first steps, such as being able to hold up his own head. No doubt, in less than a year, the tiny new feet will be chasing after older brothers. And, in the many years to come, those same feet will take him to school and to life as an adult. Hopefully, these tiny feet will become old feet, like mine, chasing after grandchildren.
The story of our lives is a tale of our feet. Oh, the places they’ll go!
Message from Mystery Acres
One of my favorite things to do in the forest is to walk. My pace is usually quite slow, as I study the foliage and rocks along my path. Each trek brings something new to enjoy. During the non-winter months, I look carefully for wildflowers, prepared to photograph, and document, any new discoveries, and to see familiar “friends.” With almost 100 different varieties identified thus far, it is thrilling to discover yet another new flower. I am also always on the lookout for interesting rocks. The land gives birth to new rocks continuously, some of which are round or egg-shaped. Anyone who walks with me and finds a round rock is given the directive to find a nearby tree and place the rocks near the base. Thus, future treks show where others have gone, and make the trees look like someone is laying eggs throughout the forest.
In the winter, my husband and I love to visit when there is snow on the ground. Our first visit to Mystery Acres was when it was under a blanket of snow. Not only is the forest particularly enchanting after a snow, but this is also a great time to see animal footprints. We can see where the deer have walked and where they have made their beds for the night. Small animals, such as rabbits, also leave evidence of their journeys.
The message of Mystery Acres is a reminder that our steps leave evidence. Others who come after us can see the places we have walked. What story will our journey leave behind for those who come after us?
Ancient Mystery’s Voice
“Beautiful feet bring good news.” (see Isaiah 52:7; Nahum 1:15; and Romans 10:15)
There’s a delightful saying about feet echoed three times in the Bible. It’s a curious phrase about how beautiful the feet are of someone who brings good news. I don’t know about you, but when I think of someone bringing good news, my attention is not drawn to their feet! So, what’s going on here?
During ancient times, more travel was done on foot then in a vehicle. The wealthy and royalty had carriages, but average people walked everywhere they needed to go. After a long journey it was customary to wash one’s feet before fully entering a home. The longer the journey, the dirtier the feet. When someone walked a long way to bring good news, their efforts resulted in the usual soiled feet, but this evidence of their journey was seen as beautiful, not filthy. A recipient of good news brought a long way by soiled feet might see beauty in the messiness and joyfully wash the feet of the traveler. The good news delivered via so many dirty steps brought love, hope, peace, and joy.
I have also been thinking about Jesus’ feet, once tiny like my newest grandchild. Jesus surrendered His unlimited nature to become a limited human, starting as a helpless baby. It’s hard for me to comprehend this, but I accept the intention as an act of love. My 4 and 7-year-old grandsons have been asking some interesting questions about Jesus during my visit. In explaining things to them, I realize anew the value in Jesus becoming a human being so He could directly talk to other humans. His words were written down by some of His followers, making God’s thoughts clearer to the rest of us who read them.
And His feet, and the places they took Him, show us how to walk through our lives. Born into a carpenter’s family, Jesus traveled by foot and not by horse or carriage. For His entire ministry He walked to various towns, bringing good news. He taught and healed the people along the way. Then, at the end of His time in a human body, He rode on a young donkey into Jerusalem, on a final journey to a gruesome death. Those same feet, often covered in dirt from His travels, were covered in blood from Him being whipped and then nailed to a cross.
Three days later, those same feet were alive again. Jesus’ feet brought good news, news of a price paid in full and an open invitation to a forgiven life, one set free of shame and guilt. His feet left a print on the world larger than anyone. Now those were some beautiful feet!
Living in Mystery
What does it look like to live in the mystery of beautiful feet? First, it means being grateful for the service our feet provide in our own lives and the lives of those around us. Wherever we are, and whatever we do there, our feet are responsible for getting us there. Take a moment to thank your feet for what they enable you to do. Have you traveled to ordinary and extraordinary places? Thank your feet!
Next, living in the mystery of beautiful feet is awareness of the evidence our steps leave behind. When our feet stop traveling through this life, what footsteps remain? Have we stepped on people on the way to what we want, or have we used our feet to make the lives of others better? Everyone leaves a trail. Like footprints in the snow, what will others see about our lives after we’ve passed through?
Lastly, do you use your feet to deliver good news? Does your presence bring hope, love, peace, or joy when you arrive? Or do you walk with dirty feet, bringing news of despair or discouragement? How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!
As I sit here, with my tired feet in slippers, at the end of ten days of helping my daughter, I am grateful for the steps I’ve been able to take in this family. This morning, I swayed back and forth while helping a babe fall asleep. Later, I carried a heavy load of laundry downstairs. This afternoon I played in the yard with the older grandsons. It’s been a beautiful visit, thanks to my beautiful feet. As they rest on the floor, may the words I write bring you good news of hope, joy, love, and peace, encouraging you to do the same for others. Oh, the places you, and your feet, will go!
Connecting With Mystery
Dear Lord of All Mystery, thank You for my feet and for all the places they’ve taken me. Help me to choose my future steps wisely, realizing that my journey leaves evidence behind in the lives of others. Thank You for the beautiful feet who bring good news; help my feet to be that kind of beautiful. Amen.
Notes from Dr. Mac
If you want to do your own investigation of any of the scriptures I use, I suggest you go to Bible Gateway. This free online version of the Bible allows a search of words or phrases in various translations. For further meditation on the message of feet, I suggest you read Isaiah 52:7, Nahum 1:15, and Romans 10:15. Or just do a search of the word “feet” and its 247 uses in the entire Bible.
You can find previous posts and podcasts in my ARCHIVE and organized compilations in the My “Books” section.
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