We all try to fit the slipper. Every one of us.
Maybe you've scrunched your foot tight, upholding the try hard mold. But now your foot is starting to ache . . . as is your heart.
Perhaps it is too loose. You scoff at do gooders, and run wild your own way, grass cool under bare feet. Yet, you can't avoid the gravel. It hurts . . . for a time. Then your heart becomes calloused, strong against the pricks, unaware of real danger.
Or maybe the slipper suits you well. Your life sufficient, capable, having no need of a prince. A ball, a gown, a coach? No problem! You've got this down . . . until the clock strikes midnight.
For when the duke comes to call, the slipper, oh so delicate,
s h a t t e r s at his feet.
There is no one righteous, no, not one . . . stone tablets, broken at the feet of Moses.
We have splintered these ten commands a thousand different ways.
But the story does not end here.
Cinderella pulls from her pocket the trump card . . . the matching glass slipper!
These slippers are a pair, they go together. Like purest glass, we look and see Jesus, perfect through and through, a fulfillment of the law. But God knew He would be broken. . . and that we are wounded people.
And so even before the creation of the world, He had the cross in His pocket, the trump card.
At just the right moment in history, He laid it down on the table, sealing our salvation, declaring us forgiven, slate clean, His very own.
Yet, this only applies to those who will accept His invitation.
Faith in the blood of Jesus for our shattered pieces, merits brand new slippers. We become a new creation in Christ. Like gloves, the slippers fit smooth. They never pinch or fall off.
This pair of shoes, goodness and mercy, shall follow me all the days of my life. Jesus lifts my head, turning my gaze from His feet to His face, where I find grace, oh such grace, ever moving across my life, the reflection of His glory.
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. (Psalm 23)
Will you be His child?
"If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved." Romans 10:9
There is no magic formula or prayer. Only cry out to Jesus in deepest need, confess your wrong and seek His forgiveness. Believe that He died and rose again as payment for your sins. Then search out a local group of believers, (a Bible believing church), and tell someone about your faith. Hold yourself accountable to these people.
Marriage to the Prince is only the beginning.
There is a whole life to be lived in His presence. It is a life reserved not only for heaven, but also for the here and now, for eternal life begins the moment God seals us as His own through faith in Him. Get to know Him by reading the Bible, His Word, and applying it to your life through the power of God's Holy Spirit. Converse with Him in prayer. In this manner we grow deeper and deeper in love with our Prince, the King of Kings.
Adapted from chapter 6 Accepted In The Beloved
Encountering the Living God in the book of Ruth
by Jewel Seacrest 2011
Illustrations by Jane Moore
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