Walking in Someone Else’s Shoes

Here is a saying that we say quite often “What would you do if you were in their shoes?”

A few months ago a dear friend of mine gave me her two pairs of Birkenstocks that were just my size before she moved over seas. Yesterday morning as I was getting ready for work I went to put on my reef flip flops and remembered that I had left them in Nicaragua this past week. It was then that I saw the Birkenstocks and decided that there is no time like the present to break in the shoes.

Walking someone else’s shoes is not the same as walking beside someone. It is not pointing them in the right direction and hoping that they do not get lost on the way. It is walking with someone through the valley. It is rejoicing with others even though it may make your heart a little sad. Walking in someone else’s shoes is not designed to be pleasant; it is painful and you feel the small things. Yesterday as I wore my friend’s shoes I could feel with every step how her arches are different then mine. I was reminded to pray for her and to pray over her ministry of dance.

Yesterday one of our teens that we work with called me and asked me to help her have a baby shower. I could hear the uncertainty in her voice. I could hear how much she hoped I would say, “yes”; and at the same time the embarrassment b/c she knows that I disappointed with the decisions that have led her to where she is now. There are times to walk beside someone there are times to point people in the right direction. And there are times when you are to remove your shoes and to put on theirs, to have blisters and no access to Band-Aids, and to feel the hurt and to love them through it.

There are quite a few situations I find myself involved with right now. The cliché response would be, “What would I do if I was in their shoes.” But after yesterday I believe that God has showed me that there are many things that we can never answer until we actually put on their shoes and begin to walk.