14-17 But how can people call for help if they don’t know who to trust? And how can they know who to trust if they haven’t heard of the One who can be trusted? And how can they hear if nobody tells them? And how is anyone going to tell them, unless someone is sent to do it? That’s why Scripture exclaims, A sight to take your breath away!
Grand processions of people telling all the good things of God! But not everybody is ready for this, ready to see and hear and act. Isaiah asked what we all ask at one time or another: “Does anyone care, God? Is anyone listening and believing a word of it?” The point is: Before you trust, you have to listen. But unless Christ’s Word is preached, there’s nothing to listen to. Romans 10:14-17, The Message
I remember as if today, my Abuela (grandmother) revealing the true beauty of Jesus’ feet. I was looking at The Sacred Heart of Jesus painting she had over her dresser while she dusted her furniture. She looked at me and said, “You do know that this is not the real image of Jesus, right?” “It’s not?”. I asked. “Do you know how many girlfriends Jesus would have had if he was THAT good-looking?” she said as she laughed. Then she went on, “The real Jesus was dark-skinned, his hair probably frizzy from the sweat and walking under the sun all day, his hands not only dirty and dry from the wind and dust but contaminated from all the diseases he healed with his hands. And where did Jesus go potty? His feet and toenails had to be dirty from walking in his sandals all day in the dirt and the mud. He probably had calluses for all we know.”
His feet were all I could focus on. To think that our feet, which some hide in shoes and sneakers and others exhibit after freshly done pedicures, are what we use to carry ourselves and, most importantly, bring the Good News to many.
Spiritual exercise: Observe the image and re-read the text. What comes to your mind? Who or what does your soul encounter when you recall the first time you believed? What about the image and the text move you? Where or to whom do the text and image lead you? Which speaks louder to you, the text, or the image? In what way? As a member of the community, what do you envision? What gifts or goals are born from your visions? Where are you being sent in your community? Who needs to listen to good news amid dire circumstances? Will your feet carry you to meet them where they are?
How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!
In Christ,
Pastor Iraida