Contentment in our very own boots….

Tonight I watched my little girl try to put on my husband’s boots.  A cute and precious moment that quickly turned into a moment of frustration for her!  She would get one on, and then try to figure out how to lift her other foot high enough to get it in the other boot. Then, she would attempt to lift her foot up and that would cause her to fall.  She started crying in frustration.  Now, before you think I am some bad mom watching this without helping, I wanted to see how this 19 month old would handle this situation.  Next, she decided to get back up and this time she set up the boots, scooted them over to the wall, grabbed onto the wall, and figured out how to get the boots on correctly.  Perseverance.   Now to attempt to walk. She shuffled a few steps before falling yet again, and then she tried to get up.  Finally, she had had enough.  She got her feet out of the boots, she looked up at her daddy and I (who were watching her), and she RAN into her daddy’s arms!  It was like she felt so much freedom in her own feet. This all got me thinking about how so many times we try to fit into someone else’s shoes (or boots).  We often step out of our own nice fitting shoes and we attempt to MAKE our feet fit somewhere else.  Somewhere they were never intended to fit.  We try, we push, we shove, we fall, and many times we keep up this pattern over and over again. Do we ever do this?  Do we often try so hard to be like someone else or have what some has, that we end up in a heap of frustration?  Or maybe we just want to be different than we are.  Why?  Why do we sometimes go there?   Well… I think sometimes it is a lack of contentment that drives us to try to fit into another’s shoes, another’s job, another’s personality, another’s life.  Maybe we think that by trying on another’s “life” or a different life, that we will magically gain more peace with our current situation. The problem with this thinking is that it is false.   Getting into someone else’s boots almost always leads to tears, frustration, and maybe even a fall or two. The answer? We need to get our feet out of the boots of others around us, and run free on our very own feet. We need to stop trying to not be ourselves, and start appreciating the person we are! We need to get back to finding out who we are, and being content with that person…all parts of her! We need to be thankful for the boots we have, that fit us well, and wear those with confidence. We need to remember that God made each of us unique and special.  From our personalities, to our appearances, to our situations…He is right in the center of it all.  He made us, and He loves us.  When we can start to acknowledge and appreciate that fact, we will stop trying to wear another person’s boots.  Hopefully this means we will not fall quite as often, not get quite as frustrated with how things may be in our lives, and hopefully, we will run this life with a bit more peace and freedom!! Thankful for my sweet Reagan so vividly showing me this lesson today!! Our boots fit us for a reason.  May we wear them with contentment and thankfulness today!]]>