Wednesday, November 2, 2011

New Shoes for the Missionary


image photobucket.com

“Big and Tall,” that was the name of the store where my husband liked to purchase his pants that would fit his long legs. 

My husband especially liked the Big and Tall store to secure his shoes, because his feet are wide and difficult to fit.  The “Big and Tall” store carried a top line of shoes that were comfortable and matched his taste.  Although the shoes were a bit expensive they were worth every penny.  The owners became our friends and they would always notify us when there was to be a sale.

Our Missionary minded church had invited a Missionary, his wife and little girl to hold us a week of services before they left on their missionary journey. To save the church money, they were staying with the Pastor’s family, and church members were bringing in prepared dinners for them all.

Scheduled to bring a meal, I was ready and also had another agenda in mind.  When God lays something on your heart so strong, it is best that you do exactly as He tells you.

Prior to arriving with the food, I stopped at the bank and drew out $75 in cash, then I proceeded to the Pastor’s home.

image courtesy photobucket
As I reach my destination, I noticed the Missionaries little girl lying on the sofa. Her mother told me she was sick and had a fever. Perhaps it was because I had been in touch with God that afternoon, but as I reached out and touched her forehead, the fever left and she asked her mother for a drink of water.

Handing the food to the Pastor’s wife, I asked to speak to the Pastor. He came into the room where we were, and I told him my message.

“God has asked me to request that you take our Missionary to the Big and Tall Store down on East 14th Street, and use this $75 to purchase him a good pair of shoes.

The Pastor was not surprised, because he knew I often heard from God so he quickly agreed to do this after their meal.

Returning home, I was again impressed to telephone the "Big and Tall" store and tell them that my Pastor was on his way with $75 to spend for some new shoes for a Missionary friend.  I asked if he would please give him the best price they could for a new pair of shoes. The owner assured me that he would take personal care of the Man of God.

Unknown to me was the fact that God was also working on the other end. The Owner was a devout Christian man, and after measuring the feet of the Missionary, he brought out three pairs of beautiful shoes. Each pair of shoes was a perfect fit, and the owner said that today these shoes are on sale for $25 each, so the $75 would take care of all three.

At that point, greed entered my Pastor’s heart and he asked the owner if they had any shoes in HIS size for that price. The owner replied, “No these are the only ones on sale today for the special price!”

I believe the reason was that my Pastor was BIG, but not TALL!   So what do you think?

This post is linked to: Grace Café. Please visit for some good words you will find there. http://www.reflectionsofhisgrace.com/2011/11/beyond-understanding/

3 comments:

Pamela said...

You are such a sturdy sheltering tree. Your missionary friend was blessed to spend time in your shade. My daddy is tall and we drove quite a distance to shop at the Big and Tall shop.

Joan Hall said...

How wonderful that you obeyed God and that He was already working on the owner's heart.

Tough call on the pastor...it's easy to think he shouldn't have asked that, but then I have to ask myself, "would I have asked the same thing?"

Blessings,
Joan

floyd said...

What a shame... But men of God are tempted maybe in little ways that most of us take for granted. I'm sure he was a good man, just not as mature as we always hope they are.

Nice job being sensitive to His spirit. Good for you, and now us...