Beautiful Feet

Beautiful Feet
by Tina Nahid 8-5-09

How beautiful upon the mountains
Are the feet of him who brings good news,
Who proclaims peace,
Who brings glad tidings of good things,
Who proclaims salvation,
Who says to Zion,
“ Your God reigns!”

--Isaiah 52:7

I have several friends who would very boldly proclaim that they are just “not feet people.” They don’t want to see feet. They don’t like to feel someone’s feet next to them. They sure don’t like to rub feet. They want to be as far away from feet as possible. Sound familiar? I have to admit that I do understand this foot “phobia” as this part of the body is not always the cleanest or most attractive. How much more were feet smelly, dirty and sweaty in Biblical times than they are even now?

Yet, did you know that it is possible for our feet to be “beautiful?” No, this doesn’t require a day at the spa with full pedicure, wax treatment and buffing. The qualities that make our feet beautiful can be found in this verse in Isaiah 52. Would you like to have beautiful feet too? Let’s break it down:

Bringing Good News

When you enter a room or a place of any kind, what message do you bring? Do you bring a complaining, worldly attitude? Do you bring a down-trodden, timid, weak and gloomy disposition? Or, do you like to dwell on and discuss the problems and the evil of this world and society? Or, do you bring “good news?” Do you cheer people up with your countenance? Do you give them an encouraging word? Even more important, do you share the “good news” of the gospel? Do you share God’s love with those around you? This is the first step for having simply gorgeous feet.

Proclaiming Peace

I find myself constantly talking to my three children about the virtues of being a “peacemaker.” Do you carry this quality of making peace with others wherever you go? Do you carry the “shalom” of God with you so that no circumstances make you crumble? When we proclaim peace, we are proclaiming the God of all Peace. We are telling and showing others the peace they can find only in a relationship with God. When we are a peacemaker, we do not harbor an argumentative or divisive spirit. We can agree to disagree in love. Let us cultivate our feet in this way.

Bringing Glad Tidings of Good Things

This would be the opposite of a doom and gloom attitude, a pessimist spirit, a cup-half-empty approach. Now, does this mean we should be phony or false about serious problems in our life or in society or the world? No, we must also be watchful and aware of the evil around us, coming against it in prayer and intercession. Yet, what makes our feet beautiful in God’s sight is that we are “encouragers” of one another. That we encourage one another as we see the day of the Lord approaching. We have a blessed Hope in Jesus our Lord. He loves us and is for us, not against us. We must bring these tidings into all the spheres of influence in our lives.

Proclaiming Salvation

Feet that are truly beautiful proclaim salvation. This is not just for those with a gift of evangelism. This is for all who are disciples of the Lord Jesus. We must proclaim the gift of salvation whenever the Lord opens the door for us to speak. There are countless opportunities to speak into people’s lives about the salvation of God. Tragedies occur daily around the globe. Hearts are broken or will be continually. We live in a fallen world where people need Hope. How wonderful that we as the Body have the answers. All we must do is step out in faith and proclaim.

Say Unto Zion, “Your God Reigns!”

As a believer and a member of the body of Jesus the Messiah, who has been grafted into the family of God, I see this verse both with a literal and a spiritual insight. I believe in the literal Zion, Jerusalem, the holy city. Therefore, I believe as followers of our Lord, we are to minister to the Jews, to proclaim the love of God to them, to tell them that “Your God reigns!” I believe we are to love them by sharing the love of Jesus with them, witnessing to them about God’s salvation in their Messiah. After all, Romans 11 is very clear that their eyes have been blinded to the truth partly so the gentiles could be “grafted in” and receive salvation. We are now to show them the mercy we have been shown by sharing their Messiah “to the Jew first, then to the Greek.” Jesus Himself is our Jewish Messiah.

On another level, we are to help to build one another’s faith by proclaiming the greatness and the goodness and the faithfulness of God. No matter who we may meet, we should praise our God for who He is, for His character, for His power, for His love. We are to even stir ourselves up in our most holy faith and proclaim the attributes of our Father daily.

I hope you are as excited about beautifying your feet as I am! Are you tired of the cracks on your heels, and the bunions on your toes? Although these earthly characteristics may persist, your feet can become exciting, beautiful, and glamorous in the sight of God. They can even become like the feet of Jesus whom Mary washed with her tears and dried with her hair. She was so overwhelmed with the awe and love of Jesus. May we walk with holy, set-apart feet, pleasing to our Father and a blessing to all people we may encounter.

Help us, dear Father, to cultivate beautiful feet in your sight. Give us your grace to live pure and blameless lives before you, to present ourselves as a living sacrifice, pleasing to you, for this is the very least you are worthy of. I love you and need you every day. In Jesus name, Amen.

With love,
Tina