Footprints in Snow

This was originally posted to my other blog and I realized it is more appropriate on my personal one (here).
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Most people who live in wintry climes experienced climbing over a snow bank. Sometimes it is a small hill out of piled or wind-drifted snow, pristine and ready to explore with child-like delight.

 

Sometimes we face a muddy, gravel-pitted and icy hurdle to get where we want to go.

 

A recent snowfall left a shoulder-high wall between me and my morning run to the bakery. I wasn't going to be deterred. I plowed ahead with snow spilling over the tops of my knee-high boots.

 

We learn to place our steps in the footprints of those who climbed over the snowbank before us. The chance that we'd sink deeper than those footprints is miniscule; we know it is a safe path.

 

As I climbed back over the snowbank on the return trip, a thought danced through my mind and I wanted to share it with my readers.

 

We often see "footprints in the sand" signifying Christ walking with us, carrying us in times of trouble.

When things get REALLY tough and the world gives us the cold shoulder, Christ is still there, climbing over the snow banks with us.

 

Even when we insist that we can tackle the challenge on our own, Christ walks a step before us, encouraging us to walk in His footsteps, for we thus know the path is safe for us to walk too.

~ESA

Inspiration from a Coffee Pot

This morning, I was inspired by the office's communal coffee pot. It's not what you may think when you read that last sentence. This pot was empty and in desperate need of scrubbing.

Sometimes you can do a quick rinse before you start brewing the next pot of coffee. Over time, however, the transparent coffee stains get thicker and darker. If this is not addressed, it can be so bad that one can not see the coffee level inside the glass pot.

So this morning, I scrubbed it with good ol' fashioned elbow grease, rinsing it to see if I got all the stains. But then when I held it up to a white paper towel ... the stains were revealed in all their glory!

That's when inspiration struck. How often am I like that coffee pot?

There are stains on my soul that are not clearly visible day by day, but if left alone can become darker and more prominent. If I hold it up to other souls in this world, it doesn't seem so bad; for who can say if the stain are on my coffee pot or theirs? So I just rinse off and move on.

Yet...

If I held my soul up to Christ, there are my stains, dark against His glory -- a big ugly mess.

Often we hear, "Keep eyes upon God." Maybe one of the reasons to do so is that we begin to get a real good look of what is within us that needs a bit of scrubbing.

~ ESA