August 19 Prayer (Pumps of Peace)

Ask any woman in the summer which type of shoe she is wearing and she’ll probably say a sandal for good reason. Sandals keep her feet nice and cool in the summer heat. 

And have you ever noticed that running shoes are made of lightweight materials so the runner can run faster than with heavier shoes? It’s about lightening the load and winning the race. 

Your average everyday hiker wouldn’t be caught dead wearing a pair of hot pink heels on the hiking trail. Not even if they looked cute. They know that the better choice of hiking boots can help prevent the breaking of ankles on rocky terrain. They could even be life-saving! 

We can see that every type of shoe mentioned above serves a specific purpose for a specific goal, and they are hardly interchangeable. But there’s one more shoe I want to talk about that’s mentioned in the Bible. As Christians. we are told that there is a certain pair of shoes that we need to prepare, or shod, our feet with. 

Those shoes are the gospel of peace. 

Who knew the Bible would tell us what kind of shoes we should be wearing? 

The shoes that Paul talked about played a very necessary part in the uniform of a soldier- a Christian soldier who was going to war. Just as a soldier equips themselves with the proper shoes for war, the proper shoes for a Christian going into spiritual battle are the shoes called the gospel of peace. 

And having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; -Ephesians 6:15 NKJV 

You know how it is when you’ve forgotten your shoes – ouch! The cement is too hot and all sorts of Lego-like sharp and pointy objects become the home to the area you step on. All kinds of places become no-go zones when your feet are unprotected. Pointy rocks, jagged glass, and hot and prickly grass are all no fun to walk on barefoot! 

But when you slip on your trusty pair of shoes, you’ve got the freedom to stroll almost anywhere without worrying about the ground underfoot. Shoes let you adventure forth with confidence because they keep you steady and supported with every step.

Sis, you’re not going to wear a pair of ballet slippers to go hiking. Nor are you going to strap on a pair of hiking boots when you need to run a marathon. But isn’t it funny how Paul tells us to prepare for spiritual warfare by putting on the gospel of peace? Sounds crazy, right? But it isn’t! 

Just as shoes for warfare make a soldier ‘battle ready’, the gospel of peace will surround us during the times we will be waging war with the enemy and give us a peace and tranquility like only He can. God’s truth grounds us firmly so we can move forward with confidence. There’s no need to worry about anything hindering our duty of warfare for the King. We have confidence because we are equipped with His peace for the battle ahead! 

Sis, are you ready to shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace and go to war? You are already equipped with the perfect pair of shoes to get the job done. 

Let’s do this!