I have two bunions and they cause me pain.
Ouch!
In case you aren't familiar with bunions, they are a foot deformity that forms at the base of your big toe, causing the big toe to lean toward the second toe. Some people are born with bunions and they don't cause any pain, and then there are some like me that become inflamed and larger over time and age.
My bunions are hereditary. The large bony joint that juts outward creating a hook-like shape at my big toe is an inherited trait from my father's side of the family. As a kid, I didn't pay much attention to my feet or my bunions. I wore the fashionable1980's jellies summer sandals like most girls, suede clogs in the 1990s, kitten heels in the early 2000s and, daringly faced life in 3.5-inch heels as a politician.
My feet always looked normal to me until one day, my mother lovingly yet pointedly shared how my feet were different. How my bunions caused both feet to jut awkwardly at the base of my big toe, causing them to look differently.
Have you ever gone through life thinking something was normal and then someone points out that what you thought was normal, isn't?
That is how it was with me and my bunions.
Recently, I decided to go see a podiatrist after my birthday, I noticed my feet had spread wider and my bunions ached. After several temporary pain-relieving treatments, my doctor and I agreed that the only way to completely fix the deformities on my feet would be surgery.
After making the decision to get the bunionectomies, I spent time contemplating with God about what two-foot surgeries would look like during the Christmas holidays. I began to ask God to give me a spiritual understanding. (Anytime, I have a surgery or medical procedure, I always ask God to not only reveal the natural purpose but also the spiritual purpose.)
What was God trying to teach me from this experience of two-foot surgeries and at least four months of downtime?
Here is what God shared with me and now I want to share with you:
As I stated previously, all my life, I never considered that my feet were deformed or that they weren't like everyone else's. Yes, I knew that they looked different (thanks mom!) but I never regarded them as abnormal.
Nevertheless, God began to reveal how it's common for us to pick up abnormal, unhealthy, and un-Godlike thoughts, ideas, attitudes, and behaviors because we live in a fallen (sinful) world and how these abnormal thoughts can become our normal.
However, God loves me and He loves you so much that He does not want us to live in an abnormal or deformed condition when we can live a healthy, full, and prosperous life.
God shared how out of His great love for me that He wants me to experience living a full life with healthy feet; feet that aren't deformed, or disfigured by a jutting joint that causes pain. God spoke to my heart about loving me so much that He will lovingly lead me to surgery and at least four months of downtime to repair a deformity that I actually thought was normal.
The year 2020 and this deadly pandemic has been quite a type of surgery for us all. God has caused each of us to take time to slow down as He exposes things from our lives. Perhaps God is also using this time to expose unhealthy, deformed opinions or beliefs, that like my bunions have altered your perspective. You've thought of them for so long or did the actions for so long that they have become normalized. However, when you hold your actions to the lens of Christ, you understand they are not.
By the time you read this article, I will be preparing for my second foot surgery. My bunions, can only be permanently removed by surgery. That means, my big toe becomes broken and realigned with two screws, and the side of the bony joint is shaved off with a surgical tool.
Some ideas, thoughts, behaviors, and opinions that you have picked up from previous generations are deep-rooted. They have been inherited, and God is using this time of a global pandemic, to slow you down and reveal His light.
Some of your thoughts are unhealthy.
Some of your opinions are not biblical.
Some of your behaviors resemble my bunions...you think they are healthy, but in reality, they are not. They are not behaviors that are rooted in someone who knows that Jesus Christ loves and cares for them.
Will you allow God to search your heart and reveal any "bunion-like" issues that have caused an ugly deformity in your mind, or heart? Allow God to cut it off so you can live, whole, healthy, and the abundant life Jesus Christ died on the cross for us all to experience. You are worth it and God loves you so much!
This article was published in Jewel Warrior, a Christian women's online devotional. Please subscribe to receive encouraging devotionals each day from women from around the world. Jennie is not her actual name
Hi, my name is Kacie Starr Long. I am an author, speaker and I love to use my voice to point people to Jesus. When I'm not writing, I'm either working out at Orange Theory Fitness or sewing. God delivered me from food addiction and I have a sewing ministry for women who have been previously incarcerated and at-risk teens. I am the proud wife to Alfred T. Long, Sr and together we lead a non-profit that serves prisoners and their families. Connect with me at www.InspiredOverflow.com and via my YouTube page for more daily Christian teachings and encouragement.
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