Walk a Mile in These Shoes

Before we judge someone -- let's look again.
These aren’t designer sandals.
They’re cut-up plastic bottles tied together with twine.
They’re not a fashion statement — they are necessity.

And suddenly Luke 6:37 feels less like a suggestion and more like a command: “Judge not -- condemn not -- forgive".

It’s easy to form opinions from a distance. It’s harder to imagine the miles those feet have walked. Hot dirt. Sharp stones. Long roads we have never had to travel.

We live in abundance most of the time. Closets full. Pantries stocked. Options everywhere. But somewhere in this great big world, someone is fashioning shoes from trash just to protect their soles.

And God sees them.
He sees the callouses.
He sees the hunger.
He sees the resilience.
He sees the dignity.

Appearances can deceive us -- but hearts tell the real story.

As God’s ambassadors, we are not called to evaluate people. We are called to love them. To pray for them. To stand in the gap for those who have less than we do and carry more than we can imagine.

Lord, please forgive us for judging those who beg on street corners. Please forgive us for counting them out.

What if instead of judging, we interceded?
What if instead of assuming, we asked God to bless?
What if instead of turning away, we allowed our hearts to break a little?

“Whatever you did for one of the least of these -- you did for Me.” (Matthew 25:40)

Those words change everything.
Because that image? That’s not “them.”
That’s someone Jesus loves. Lord, soften our hearts.
Make us generous. Make us compassionate.
Make us people who look deeper and love wider.

Before we judge someone -- may we first learn to kneel and pray.
And maybe — just maybe — we walk a mile in their shoes.