2 minute read
Brown Suede Shoes
by Dr. James Hawkins
In 1955, Carl Perkins wrote a song titled, “Blue Suede Shoes,” which became a hit for Elvis Presley. Blue suede shoes epitomized the high-class lifestyle that Mr. Perkins was satirizing. I never owned a pair of blue suede shoes, but I did purchase a pair of twotone brown suede shoes when I achieved a modicum of success as a young, twenty-something, low-level business manager.
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I loved my brown suede shoes, and I wore them often. They fit perfectly, were very comfortable on my feet, and made me feel “dapper.” I got so used to my brown suede shoes that I wore them even when they didn’t match the suit I selected for that day. I kept those brown suede shoes well past their life span. I even carried those brown suede shoes into my marriage, and much to the chagrin of my wife, I refused to throw them away. By then, they had become a part of my body and an extension of my personality.
Finally, after much “heated discussion” (my wife and I never argue), I reluctantly agreed to part with my highly desirable brown suede shoes but only
after my wife agreed to buy me more stylish shoes to replace my long-time favorites. She did, and I must say that I came to like her new choice as much as my old brown suede shoes. The new footwear became just as comfortable and eventually made me feel dapper once again.
Many of us have a pair of brown suede shoes hiding somewhere in the closets of our hearts. Our brown suede shoes are represented by things like old habits, judgmental attitudes, unforgiveness, ecclesiastical traditions, promiscuous thoughts, and other tawdry transgressions that we have become so comfortable living with that we are unwilling to give them up to the garbage collector.
These spiritual brown suede shoes, if worn long enough, become an integral part of our personalities and fit us so well that we convince ourselves that we cannot part with them. It may take some strong conviction, even some heated discussions with the Holy Spirit, before we acquiesce to the Lord’s persuasion and rid ourselves of shoes that no longer fit our new character and calling. When we do, our Heavenly Father will replace our old brown suede shoes with more stylish ones like praise and worship, acceptance of others, freedom through forgiveness, the leading of the Holy Spirit, purity of thought, and holy living. But we must first make room in our closets for our new shoes by getting rid of our old brown suede shoes. It may be a painful parting, but it will be well worth the effort when we are dressed in the likeness of our Lord.
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