Day 38

It's Day 38 of  The Red Shoe Project  and even though some parts of the country are getting ready for  snow, I was found running about town, (in Sarasota, Florida), in my RED flip flops.  It was a gorgeous day!  And just as these bold, RED SHOES are meant to bring focus to The Power and Presence of God in my life, I have always found it wise to pay close attention to any idea or concept that is presented to me, boldly, 3 times, over a very short period of time. So today my thoughts are all centering around the word, "MAGNETIC"

When something is "MAGNETIC" it has an extraordinary power 

or ability to attract something to it.

My first MAGNETIC experience was when I was a little girl. The Coca Cola Bottling Company had a contest going on where you had to collect all the Coke Bottle Caps you could.  Inside each cap was the picture of a Red Sox baseball player.  When you collected the pictures of the entire team, you could trade them in for a special prize... like a Red Sox baseball hat or bat or glove.   With all that in mind, my Dad took a magnet and attached a long wire to it. Every day I would go up to the corner store and ask if I could collect the bottle caps from their soda pop machine.  There I was, feeding the wire down into the machine where the bottle caps were.  The bottle caps would connect themselves to the magnet, and I would pull the wire back up slowly, and look diligently inside the caps to see if there were any new pictures of players that I didn't already have in my collection. Even doubles were good, because you could trade them with someone else for a player you didn't have.

Fast forward several decades.  Today I was thinking about when I first was writing my book, The Yellow Brick Road:  A Woman's Journey to the Edge and Back, I went downtown to meet up with a business associate.  I found her, in the shoe store, next door to her business. She shouted for me to come in and join her -- There was a Sale going on!  This was a very high end shoe store... a little more than I was accustomed to spending on footwear.  I stepped just inside the door (to be polite) and the owner called out to me, 

"Come in! Come in! Can I interest you in some shoes?  

Everything is on sale!" 

I smiled sheepishly and responded, 

"Not unless you have some RUBY SLIPPERS."

"As a matter of fact, I do" she said.  "What size do you wear?"

"8 1/2."

"Let me check in the back."

A few minutes later, she returned from the back room with a large shoe box.  She took off the top of the box, unwrapped the paper, and there emerged the most beautiful pair of RED shoes I'd ever seen in my entire life! They were RED Satin with Swarovski Crystal Hearts. 

"Would you like to try them on?"

"O.K." I nodded, thinking  "What's the harm? 

I'm just trying them on." 

As my foot neared the shoe, I felt like they sucked my foot right into place.  

Yes... they were MAGNETIC.  Unbelievable! you may think,  But true!

 I hesitantly asked "How much are they?" and couldn't believe her response.  This was truly a magnificent sale! ( I think they were like 70% off! ) 

"SOLD!!!" I responded with a smile.

Eventually, these RUBY SLIPPERS would become the shoes on the front cover of my book. And I'm usually seen wearing them when I am speaking at special events.

This very week, I met with several Discussion Groups where we are talking about God -- Does He really exist? Can we have a relationship with Him?  Many people are searching and seeking for answers.  A few have even mentioned sensing that... like a magnet, they feel like they are  being drawn to this church... to this discussion group... to The Bible...  to God.

"No one can come to Jesus unless the Father draws him".  

John 6:44

Interesting, isn't it? 

 Finally, today makes 38 Days in my pursuit for a closer walk with God.  My daily activity has included a significant increase in Worship & Praise, Bible Reading and Prayer... for these things tend to draw me most into His Presence.  I am noticing that at the beginning, it was hard to get into that habit.  But now, like a magnet, I am drawn in quite easily and carried along into these Divine Disciplines. 

Yes... God is MAGNETIC and I often find myself taking off my RED shoes 

in His Presence.

Gail

Day 37

It's Day 37 of  The Red Shoe Project and this afternoon, my RED patent leather pumps brought me to Starbucks for an incredible Chai Tea Latte, (actually 2 of them), and some great conversation with 3 of my closest friends. We all came from different places, have different gifts, different jobs, different lives... but somehow we just seemed to fit perfectly at that little round coffee-shop table. Sometimes the only thing better than a Grande Chai Tea Latte is a Gathering of the Girls.

Before we knew it, we were wiping the milk off our lips, reapplying lip stick and heading over to The Community Foundation for a meeting on Giving Circles. Yes!  We are all believers in Generous Giving! It's one of the things we have in common. And we are EXCITED about the possibilities that  Giving Circles present.

The clock struck 6:30 and we all rushed off in different directions... back to our individual lives. I love my girlfriends!  They are such a source of Joy, Wisdom, Creativity, Strength, Laughter, Encouragement, Positivity and so much more for me.  I can't imagine not having them in my life. One of them I've known for 12 +1/2  years...one for almost 1 year, and one for just a few months now. But I have no doubts that we fit together for some wonderful purpose.

After our departure, I headed over to my church to catch the last 1/2 hour of Encore -- an evening of phenomenal praise and worship music.  It was a great way to end my day... thinking about the Greatness of God... and shouting it at the top of my lungs with a few hundred others!

After all that, someone asked me, "What's God doing today in your life?" My response?  He's doing great things. Sometimes exactly what those great things are - is a mystery.  It's like dumping a box of puzzle pieces out, knowing that it's going to one day be an amazing picture.  But right now, today, I haven't quite discovered how exactly those pieces fit together.

It can be a little overwhelming.  Like many of you, I'm used to quick and instant gratification. But Life's not always like that, is it? I've learned, over the years, to take a few deep breaths, chill out, sleep on it, and face tomorrow with a good attitude knowing that in time, the pieces will come together.

Isn't that called, "Walking by Faith?"

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see."

Hebrews 11:1

As I kick off the RED high heals and pull on my warm RED socks,

I'm believing that tomorrow holds some answers.

Believe with me!

Gail

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the evidence of things not yet seen.

Day 36

It's was a bit cooler than usual in Florida today, so yes, I was spotted out and about town, sporting my RED ankle boots, on this 36th Day of  The Red Shoe Project.  One of those stops was at Living Word Christian Bookstore for my weekly Bible Study Group. On average, there's about 10 of us women that get together to dig deeper into God's Word under the direction of The Holy Spirit.

Today we talked about ..."Fearing the Lord".  

What does that mean?    Are we to be afraid of God?

It was a great discussion, and although I can't share everything from that 2 hour class, I did want to bring up one particular point of interest.  So many of us can totally relate to God as Our Father...  Daddy... Papa.   All of the women in this group have strong relationships with God.  Each of them could tell you countless, personal examples of the close, loving relationship they have with Him.

But then we veered off into a little bit of a different direction.  We talked about some of the Names of God that describe His great power.  Names like:

 Almighty God.   The Righteous Judge.   My Deliverer.

The Lord of Hosts of Heaven's Armies.    God Most High.

The All Sufficient One.    My Front & Rear Guard.   My Provider.

God of Glory.   King of Kings & Lord of Lords.   My Righteousness.

Suddenly... a quiet, Holy HUSH came upon us.  You could feel the whole atmosphere in the room change.  Recognizing God's Presence, we just stopped everything right there and sat quietly in awe of Him.  Wow!  Worthy is His Name!

Here's the paradox.  On the one hand, He's Our Father.  Like a child, we sit in Papa's lap. We hug Him. We hold Him.  We rest our head upon His chest and listen to His heartbeat.  We laugh.  We cry.  We share out uttermost secrets with Him.  We are safe.  We are loved.

On the other hand, we recognize that there's a whole other side to Our Father.  He may be Our Father, but He's also God Almighty! The Righteous Judge.  The Deliverer.  The King of Kings and Lord of Lords!  (You get the picture). 

So here's the golden nugget I gleaned from that:

If God is all that and more... how small my cares and concerns are in contrast to who He is.  Yet... they are anything but insignificant to Him!  He has convinced me that He is MORE than able to deliver me, provide for me, understand me, position me, fight for me, etc. etc. etc.  

"Be still and know that I am God!"

Psalm 46.10

Be still?  that means... 

Don't Worry!  Don't Squirm!  Don't be Concerned!   Don't be so Uncomfortable!  Don't Pace!  Don't Struggle!  Why?  Because...

He may be My Father... but He's also GOD!

Now I can walk anywhere, in my RED SHOES, in quiet CONFIDENCE that He is Able!

Gail

Day 35

It's Day 35 of The Red Shoe Project.  

What a productive day!

RED socks around the house.

RED flats to walk the dog. 

RED boots as I headed outdoors for appointments.

Checked off everything on my TO DO List!

Check.  Check.  Check.

Now it's time to just SIT and BE QUIET...

To LISTEN for His still, quiet voice.

Enough said.

No more shoes tonight.

Gail