Day 137

Is it Day 137 of  The Red Shoe Project?  

Only God knows for sure.  LOL.  I woke up at about 4 am, (British time), to use the bathroom.  

As I shuffled through the sitting room in my warm RED socks and jammies, I glanced out the large window of our cottage.  

There, directly in front of me, was the garden.  The sun was just coming up.  What a sight to see!  How lovely.  The air was peaceful and the birds were  chirping the most delightful melody. 

A new song filled the air.

The bright yellow daffodils, 
looking like trumpets, 
were proclaiming 
the day has begun!


  



And just over to the side of them
is a bed pansies.  Didn't God recently promise me a bed of pansies?

  And then I noticed it.  
A sound... 
No, a voice...  
His voice.
 He was calling to me... 

"Come, Let us meet now!"

I am amazed that I have already discovered God in this place, so very far from home.  And just what is this place?  It reminds me of the movie, The Secret Garden. 
Thinking about that, I am reminded that the little, crippled boy, in that movie, miraculously walks in that Secret Garden.  His life forever changed!


I never did go back to bed.  
I plopped myself in front of that window, and spent the wee hours of the morning with Christ.
Amen.

Gail

Day 136

It's Day 136 of  The Red Shoe Project.  Here I am in Heathrow Airport, sporting RED shoes, as I wait to board yet another plane that will bring me to Scotland.  I did manage to get an hour or so of sleep on last night's RED eye from Boston to London.

Upon arrival, an aunt and uncle met up with me to take me on a little adventure for a few hours, just outside the city.  What a lovely time I had!  They whisked me off to their beautiful English home, fed me the most wonderful English brunch in their sun room,  and delighted me with the sweetest of conversations.  My head is still spinning, for I haven't quite fully adjusted to this driving on the other side of the road yet.  And now?

Well, now my belly is full, the clock is ticking, and I've run out of fuel.  Jet lag has hit!  Just what time is it?  I haven't a clue.  I'm guessing, noon-ish Thursday?

So I must admit, as I boarded last night's plane, I wondered what could possibly take place between the hours of  7 pm and 2 am that would qualify for Red Shoe Project material.  I was about to be boxed in like a sardine, on an air-bus, flying at 30,000 feet, for the next six hours.  My choices:  read, watch a movie or sleep.  

I dozed off for about half an hour at the beginning of the flight.  Next thing I knew, they were feeding me dinner, and quickly turning the lights out, signaling it was time to settle down.  I chose a movie… and then another.  By the time midnight rolled around, I was spent!  

It was during this midnight hour that the strangest thing happened. 

It whipped around from behind and struck me, quite unexpectedly... FEAR!!!  

False Evidence Appearing Real.  

The cabin of the plane was quiet, except for the light snore of the man sitting across the isle from me.   My mind instantly became a court room and there he was, Satan, himself, the Accuser of the Brethren, pointing right at me, and downloading a story that had me squirming in my seat.  What did I do to deserve this onslaught, this attack, this unexpected accusation?  Nothing, but I was over-tired, and you and I both know that presents a premium opportunity for spiritual attack. 

So it’s been thirty-seven years since I’ve been to Scotland.  I was just a young girl back then.  It was a dark time for me.  With that said, when I left, I shut the door behind me and decided I would never go back.  Over the years, God has done great works of healing in my life. So for me, this visit is a very big step 

of proclaiming victory, to myself, that all is well with my soul.

Here, in the darkness of the sleeping cabin, tears began to roll down my cheeks, as the devil projected an old movie of his, on the screen of my mind. The tension built within, as he presented his case.  My heart was heavy in my chest and I gasped ever so quietly for a breath. I felt so alone, so abandoned, so vulnerable. 

Then Jesus stepped in - My Advocate!  Right there, on the spot, He poured into my mind the most  incredible collage of people, prayers, scriptures and stories taken right from the last 136 days of my life.  In the blink of an eye, I saw my life flash in front of me:  The Red Shoes being worn every day;  my friend Ziva holding me by the shoulders, looking right into my eyes and profesying God's assignment into my spirit;  the ladies surrounding me in prayer;  the word studies on undergirding, confirmations, and reinforcements;  the gardenia bush;  the tears of those around me getting wrecked by God.  And yes, there it was - The Waterfall.  If I could just hold onto that happy thought.

I was so aware of what the devil was trying to do, but more 

importantly, I was witnessing Jesus' plea on my behalf.  

The waterfall quickly reminded me of the angel that stands behind it.  A smile appeared on my face. I remembered an art class with Carolyn, where I sensed the powerful presence of my own angel.  I named him Theodore. He kept showing up, several days in a row.   I never actually saw what Theodore looked like.  I just sensed his powerful presence.  He was like a strong, magnificent tower continually guarding me from behind.  And there in that plane, in the aisle, directly over my right shoulder he stood again.  "How funny,"  I thought, " that such a large angel could fit into such a tight place,"   But there he was.

More pictures continued to download. I heard specific words of encouragement that had been spoken over me these last days.  Powerful proclamations from my mentors, my daughter and from The Holy Spirit, Himself.   I closed my eyes, pushed aside the lies of the devil, and began to pray silently in a heavenly language that only God could interpret.

Was it seconds?  or minutes?  I do not know.  But when the prayer stopped,  it was as if time frooze.  I slowly turned my head to the left, took in a slow deep breath and gently opened my eyes.  There it was:   Daybreak.  

Looking outside the little oval window of the plane, I saw the most magnificent painting of God.  It was a brilliant rainbow,  resting horizontally,  on top of a floor of clouds.  In near disbelief, I went through the colors -  Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet.  They were all there.  

It was the entire spectrum 

boldly proclaiming that 

God is in charge!

in my life, 

in my heart, 

in my mind 

and right there 

in the clouds as well.  

He is a Mighty God and the Painter of the Sky! Victory had come!  I would walk off that plane, my head lifted upward, knowing who I was in Christ!

Okay... so wasn't I just questioning, a few hours ago, what I could possibly find in an airplane that I could write into the log of The Red Shoe Project?   God just loves those challenges!  And did He ever deliver!  I'm still in awe, myself, trying to hold onto that life-impacting moment.  The moment where courage was fully released into my spirit.

You see... amazing things happen at 30,000 feet
when you are wearing RED shoes!

Gail