Dirty Feet

In this season, it is hard to see past the pain, the confusion, and trust Papa God with your healing. You want to be well right now, you are tired of the feeling of always needing to be "fixed." But, alas, you give up an keep moving on... I don't know if this sounds like anyone else, but it sure does describe me. Today, I was reminded of a time I wrote an article on cleaning someone's feet. I was given the task of finding some poor person to wash, then write about my experience, but the trouble was that no one would let me wash their feet. So, I sat staring at my computer having no clue "how," I was supposed to write this paper having not had the experience. Then the Holy Spirit began to talk to me about the context of the scripture in which Jesus washed their feet. In it the disciples began to wildly object when Jesus said, "I must wash your feet." In fact, Peter said, "I am not worthy of you to wash my feet, let me wash yours." The funny thing was that neither of them were prepared for Jesus' response. He interrupted their protests with this, "If I do not wash your feet, you can not have any part of me..." Well, Crap! That shut everybody up, even Peter. The Holy Spirit began to talk to me about the hardest and the worst part of our lives. How we don't want to have to let anyone else see those areas, and we would never want someone else to have to deal with them. In Jesus time, the feet were the dirtiest part of them physically. They walked barefoot or sandaled for miles and miles everyday. Some of the disciples could have stepped on anything from poop to diseases, needless to say, they were dirty, and both Jesus and the disciples knew this. Even to this day, most people don't want people to touch their feet, or they don't want to be touched my feet. Girls, argue all the time about who's feet are uglier and most men's feet are well....more ugly. But Jesus said, "If I cannot wash your feet, you cannot have any part of me..."As I read over it again, I began to get it. Our feet represent the worst parts of us, sometimes the hidden things, and if we are willing to let Jesus "wash and love us" WHERE we are...wherever that may be, than we can not enjoy all the other benefits that come from Jesus. We must be willing to say "Jesus, I am warning you these feet smell (sin and shame), I am pretty sure I stepped on a dead animal today at some point, and the smell could cause you to throw up..." However, we know that Jesus looks at our "feet" with Joy, because Hebrews 12 says "for the JOY that was set before him, he endured the cross..." He smiles at us as the warm water washes away the "dirt" of the day, week, year, or even years, and says "You think I am afraid to touch your feet...nahhh!!! I love your feet, they're your feet, and no one else's. Sure, you stepped in alot of crap, but just come right here and I will wash every smell and dirt away. I paid for those smelly stinky feet..." Sure, we all have stinky feet, even on our best day... But the feeling when you get out of the shower and you feel are clean and warm from the shower, there is nothing like it. Thank Jesus, He is the washer of feet, because as usual mine stink again. Jesus clean my feet, please!