Shoes. You can tell a lot about a person by their shoes. They can tell a lot about a person's story. In fact, we wear shoes just about everywhere we go! If someone has on cowboy boots, well, they might be a cowboy. If someone has on Converse, they are probably young, and kinda "hip". If someone is wearing cleats, they probably play a sport. If someone is wearing pointe shoes (or, if it was me, ghillies), they are probably a dancer.
Have you ever wondered what it would have been like to be a pioneer on the Oregon Trail? Think about what their shoes must have looked like! They walked miles across the prairie - which can be very dusty and rocky, by the way - day after day. Their shoes might have told a lot about their story.
The pioneers left everything they knew, and embarked on a journey to a land they had never been. They left their homes, family, and lifestyle behind. They had to say good-bye to dear friends and family, knowing they may never see each other again. They knew the journey would be difficult, and sometimes it was more difficult than they had expected, but they kept pressing onward. Most of them had never seen this land, but had only heard good things. Some wanted a fresh start, a new lifestyle, or maybe an adventure. They had a hope that the life they faced - somewhere in the far distance - would be better than what they left behind.
Not everyone made it to the West. Some turned back, some died along the way, and some simply said "this is far enough" and settled right where they were.
In someways, our walk with God is like this. We have to leave our comfort zones, and our fleshly self behind. This is not easy, but we must keep pressing onward. We are going to a place we have never been to. We've never seen a photograph of Heaven, and we haven't driven through, but we have a hope that it will be far better than the life we leave behind. We know at the end of the long, dusty road stands a beautiful kingdom called Heaven.
Many times, the journey will get hard. We wonder if we will even make it, but Jesus is always there. He will help us get through the desert, and over the snowy mountains. As long as we don't give up, He will not give up on us.
When we reach Heaven, we will realize the journey was more than worth it. We will approach those pearly gates, and take off our old, dusty shoes. We won't need them anymore - we won't be going anywhere. We will be in Heaven to stay.
