appropriation.

some of you might know or discover,
that i'm an avid runner.
not the loanshark kind,
but the usain bolt kind!

dis afternoon, as i was dressing up for work,
there were balls of dark clouds hovering menacingly in pasir ris.
and so i prayed for the rain to delay until i reach the mrt..
thank God, He wasn't as selfish as me. He allowed it to pour.

and my umbrella got lost by a friend of mine,
i'm left wif no umbrella!
so i decided to just brave the rain,
and run to the bus stop.

running that short distance from my voideck to the bus stop
wouldn't be much of a work for me, or at least i thought.
so i ran, and got drenched by the time i reached the bus stop..
when i stopped to dry myself wif futile attempts, SUDDENLY,

there was a surge of pain that surged through the top of my toes
to my spine, to my brain.
and finally sends out an inevitable cringing expression
onto the helpless contours of my facial scape!

i've had blisters!
on the first 3 toes of each foot.
it was disturbing,
and the cringe soon became a frown..

nonetheless, i took the first few brave steps
as though i was on the moon.
trying to get used to the 'pain'
and walk as though my feet were perfectly comfortable.

and when i got onto the train,
still trying to get myself dry,
and readjust my bad hair..
i was just thinking, of all things, blisters.

rmb, i was an avid runner.
i've only experienced leg cramp once in my life.
nvr twisted an ankle,
nor fractured a bone as a soccer player..

but these blisters, seemingly small and hidden,
caused me quite a bit of distress before i start work today!
and many thoughts ran through my head,
"i thought i asked God to bless me today? what happened!"

some of you might realise or know,
that i've just bought a new pair of dress shoes.
not coz i'm a vainpot,
but the previous one had to retire due to natural wear and tear.

and den, inter alia, 2 strands of thoughts struck me!
the first, i've these pair of new shoes,
its supposed to give me new confidence and comfort,
but in turn, gave me a load of pain i didn't get from the first!

many times, we feel 'fresh' when we first had something right?
say, when we just got a new bag.
we feel proud of it, coz its spanking new,
and its fashionable!

or even when we first enter into a pact wif somebody else,
we feel a rejuvenating sense of renewing.
as though, that was a new chapter in our f/s or r/s,
where no problems would come in the near future.

exactly on the contrary,
for shoes and alot of other 'new stuffs'.
its abt getting used to.
its abt readjusting to the comfort we previously had.

wif new confidence, comes new blisters.
likewise, as the Holy Spirit reaffirms our spirit.
it seems like our dirty linen are cleaned,
and we're all set to go out there and slay the dragon!

no, these couple of blisters taught me,
that not all new things are as rosy as it might entail.
being real in our 'walk' is one such daily renewal..
it is nvr promised to be a bed of roses.

akin to a pair of shoes.
by the time we get used to that pair of shoes,
we get all comfortable wif it.
but that also hail for preparation to get a new pair soon.

like towels as well,
when its new, it can hardly absorb much water.
and when its old and rugged, it sucks up any liquid content
and soon, you'll find a hole!

likewise in our walk wif God,
we might haf made a new covenant wif God.
but if we don't constantly renew our r/s wif Him,
one day we'll be worn out before we could even realise the 'hole'.

the second strand of thought that seeped into my brain is dis,
different shoes are made for different usage.
i may be an avid runner,
but that doesn't mean i can run in anything..

a pair of dress shoes are for walking,
and making that clog clog sound when you saunter on parquet!
not for running, nor sprinting.
neither is it for soccer, nor rock climbing!

but when i get blisters from running that short distance,
doesn't mean i'm a lousy runner,
or worse, i'm not cut out to run ever again!
i'm an invalid now.. NO!

it just means i'm running in the wrong pair of shoes,
and nvr should i run in that pair again!
likewise for many of us today,
esp leaders and leaders to be..

when we're discouraged, or blistered in our 'run',
do not let the devil tell you your time is up.
do not let the devil trick you into self-pity.
nvr let the devil haf its foothold in you!

but rather, its time to reflect on our lives.
are we running in the right pair of shoes,
or haf we tried to fit ourselves in other pple's shoes,
only to find ourselves battered and discouraged in spirit!

the Lord is our family-Shoemaker.
He saw us grow up, from a 4-inch foot to a size 10,
He knows exactly our sizes,
and makes us the perfect shoes for our feet.

He doesn't give us a pair of trek shoes when we're 4,
and expect us to go trekking just coz we've the right 'equipment'.
to be able to go trekking,
we need also experience and knowledge!

in the same fashion, God doesn't give us a pair of baby's mittens
when we're a toddler!
it may be comfortable, but we won't be able to fit anymore.
there will come a season of growth and stepping up!

friends, which stage are we in our lives right now?
are we running in the right pair of shoes,
we're made for a couple of gifts and talents,
are we using it correctly?

i guess its time to run in the shoes He made for us,
that we may find ourselves running further and wif more ease.
its abt time to start running the race,
wif the appropriate pair of shoes He made for us..