They Wash His Feet!

Today we went to church in another town--you see, one of our precious men is graduating from Renewal Ranch and his church chose today to honor him, to show their genuine love and support for him.

Dustin and his dad discuss his former life.

He wasn't aware that this was going to happen, but his mom and dad chose to get down on their knees and wash his feet--After Dustin told his story of surrendering to the life of a drug addict, our hearts knew the torment, the hell that his Christian parents had gone through for almost a decade while he roamed the paths of the underworld in a place where he did not even want to live.

His mother washes his feet.

He told the story of growing up in the country, roaming the woods, hunting and fishing, doing whatever his little-boy heart desired.  Then all of a sudden, his father was without a job and moved the family to a big metropolis--after all, he had a wife and six children to feed--jobs were more plentiful there.

His dad spoke also and admitted the pride that led him to move his family to the big city--no one blames him but he feels somehow that he made a mistake, that his motive was not right in moving his family--that he did not consult God, he just did it to soothe his hurt pride over losing his job.

In the city, Dustin felt he was looked at as different--he didn't fit in with any one or any group except the drug users and pushers.  He chose the acceptance they offered and in that acceptance chose a path of loneliness, destruction, despair, drug addiction, arrests, and imprisonment of his soul.

She wipes them dry.

It was a glorious service and as the foot-washing came to an end, his mother added a dimension to it that I had never thought about before.  After she gently washed his feet, tenderly dried them, she proceeded to put his socks back on him--just like we as mothers or fathers did when our children were small.

That touched my heart in a way that even the foot-washing didn't.  She went the extra mile.  She did more than wash his feet and dry them.  She prepared his feet for service to others--

How beautiful on the mountain are the feet of those who bring good news.

Yes, she prepared Dustin to spread the good news of a Savior who stands ready, willing and able to rescue all of us from the jaws of all of satan's schemes be they addictions of any kind, bitternesses, jealousies, being easily offended, wanting to control or have our own way about everything, you name it--satan comes at each us in different ways, where he knows he can "get to us" the easiest.

The God of the manger who beckoned stars to stop and reverse their paths, who brought wise men from afar, whose birth caused angels to step from heaven's glory and sing hosannas in the highest, yes this God cares about you and me in a very personal way and longs to redeem us in every way today.

I'm sure the prayers of this Christian couple mirror what Jennifer has to say today.

Day 11

"Then our sons in their youth will be like well-nurtured plants, and our daughters will be like pillars carved to adorn a palace." Psalm 144:12

Jennifer's prayer: "Even in their youth, may my descendants have a spiritual strength and maturity that is evident to all."  ~Jennifer Kennedy Dean

My prayer: Lord, you said that even a child is known by his/her actions. I pray that my sons and daughters, my grandchildren, my descendants will make known the wonder of You through their actions. 


© all photographs and text property of Dianne Hogue unless otherwise noted