Dirty Sneaks

Last night during a short run with a friend, we came upon a crossroad...well, sorta. The sidewalk seemed to give us 2 choices - continue on it and take the long way, or cut through the lush grass to get to our destination. Am I one for shortcuts? Yes, if they work. Oh, but they must work in order for me to take them. When it comes to running, I'm out there to run, not to take short cuts. Well, we had never taken this road before, but there didn't seem to be any problem with the shortcut. In fact, it looked quite appealing. Even though it was dark, we could see so much lush green grass. So in the few seconds that we had to decide which way to take, we just jumped right off of the sidewalk and into the grass.

We hadn't jogged but a few feet when "SLOSH! SLOSH! SLOSH!" Yuck! We didn't realize it, but underneath what appeared to be lush grass was mud. It wasn't just a little mud in one area. The mud started at the front line of the grass and went to the end of the line. The entire shortcut was filled with mud. As soon as we stepped in and realized it, our feet were moving too fast to stop and turn back. Everywhere that we turned to try to move out of the mud, there was even more.

Isn't that just like life? God has a way, a road mapped out for us. Along the way we see a shortcut. It's appealing. The grass looks lush and green, but it's not necessarily the road we should take. Hastily we rush into it because all we want to do is get to the other side. There didn't seem to be anything wrong with the shortcut, but we get stuck in mud. It's not what it appeared to be. In desperation we step here and there and everywhere to try to find a way out. The only way, though, is back on His road and not ours.

When I got home, the first thing I did was wash my messy shoes. I tried to use a wet little scrubbie around the edges to take the mud off, but that wasn't doing a thing. I literally had to immerse my shoes in the water to clean the mudd off. Today my shoes don't look like they did yesterday before the muddy episode. They're a different color, and you can tell they've been through the mud.

If we get ourselves into mud, sin, mess, it's not enough to just to sprinkle a little Word on ourselves. We must allow God to immerse us in Himself so that we are truly cleansed. Afterward, we may look a bit different. We may feel and act differently, but He uses it all for Him. What was a mess, He can now use for His glory and His name's sake as we submit ourselves to Him.

So next time you're running and see a great shortcut, think twice. The point of running is in fact to run, not to take the easy and shorter way. Take HIS way, whatever that may be.