For the walking wounded…
On Tuesday I got the clearance to give that surgical shoe the boot and have graduated to wearing real shoes. Granted they have to be tennis shoes, but still…so nice.
The X-ray showed the bone is healing well and so the doctor wants to insure that the next four weeks guarantee a solid 100% finished product.
And while I can happily report that all of this transition has come with minimal discomfort, I was rather surprised that I have apparently forgotten how to walk with both feet in regular shoes.
Considering I have been walking upright for more than 56 years, the sensation I am experiencing post-surgery is extremely strange.
After six weeks with a cast around the middle of my foot and a funky flat shoe, I thought my worst adjustment would be the repaired bone.
Instead, it seems my ankle has forgotten how to bend in whatever way it is supposed to that allows my body to propel forward in the somewhat efficient way that it has all these previous years.
I walk with this halting gait, and try as I might to will my right ankle to bend like it’s buddy…no go yet.
I know it will come, so I just have to be patient and the rest of Laura Reimer will just have to put up with this re-learning curve until we get it all together again.
(Or…as together as we will ever be…)
And I want to tell you…I would do well to remember that for myself and for others in the Body of Christ.
Because we all will have some injuries…
some self-inflicted and some perpetrated against us…
and while I believe that in Christ, we do experience healing eventually…
it takes a while sometimes.
One of the most precious and beautiful parts of belonging to Christ is the fellowship we have, amongst our brothers and sisters, that allows us to patiently and lovingly walk beside others who are still limping along.
I am so grateful for those God has placed in my life who don’t push me to run when all I can do is gingerly place one foot in front of the other…who keep me company while I learn to walk again.
I hope and pray you are experiencing this love AND that you are extending it.
Can we rejoice, even in our clunky shoes, that God is so kind that He gave us not only HIS comfort, but the love and comfort of other believers when our journey slows down as we take time to heal?
God bless you today wherever you are, however you are moving along….whether running or barely making it on two feet…
you are loved and you are not alone <3
Here’s what came to my mind after reading this. It wasn’t being wounded that hit me at first. I was thinking about the people who have played a part in my spiritual walk, people from long ago and people who are around me now. I got a picture of a springboard at the pool (I’ve been enjoying trying some old dives this summer.) I began to think of how we can aid others on their journey in Christ in the same way a diving board helps us complete a dive into a pool. If we are just a simple, plain board without an adjustable fulcrum, we won’t get very high and the best we can do is just a couple of simple dives. As the board improves in quality and the use of a fulcrum is available, the potential to have a great amount of spring comes our way. As in the past, I currently have people around me who I see going off the really good board with regards to their faith. The excitement that’s evident in their daily walk is an encouragement to me. It spurs me on and invites me to go deeper in my intimacy with Jesus. I see how I too can be an encourager to those around me who are walking with Jesus or those who have yet to meet the wonderful Savior I serve. But here’s the main message in all of this that struck me. Everyone has a different speed with which they can leave the board. Some are ready to bounce high and go for it. Others have been hurt by the church in the past and have wounds. Others are filled with fear or have been rejected, unloved, and hurt in a myriad of ways. Whatever the condition we find people in we have to be sensitive to where they are in their faith in Christ. And it takes great grace on the part of every Christian to be able to encourage, and not hinder, each person Jesus has placed in our path. We are all on the same journey, it’s just that each one has a different pace. It would be great if I could pour out all at once what I’ve learned about living for Jesus. I’d love to be able to teach a back one and a half with a full twist (not one of my dives to be sure) to a beginning diver. But that’s not always going to be possible. Thanks Laura, I needed to hear this lesson. There’s no rushing required on our part because God’s timing is perfect. When we are willing to be used, He brings us the people He wants us to love and encourage in Him. And every student loves and feels loved by a teacher who is compassionate, patient, and encouraging. Just like Jesus!
I know you were going to reenter Susan but this is beautiful and I am posting it! Such words of encouragement in a great illustration. Thank YOU!!! <3