Lifa, is that your shoe?

Have you had one of those mornings where you CAN NOT GET OUT THE DOOR!?! It’s very cold and rainy here, and we are only allowed out of the house between 6-9am for exercise. Chris is making a hard-earned comeback from a hamstring injury and goes on a solo run every morning. I am in charge of the broken elbows and the toddler, plus all the essential items like rain gear, rice cakes, face masks, and locking down the house. I took this photo to represent one entire hour of very active preparation to leave the house for a 30-minute walk.  

Obvious enthusiasm.

The day after I took this photo, I set a timer.  We were going to be out the door in only 30 minutes. Bonus: Chris was taking a rest day so we could skip the 608 things it takes to secure the house before leaving. Ready, set, and.... “LIFA, WHERE ARE YOUR SHOES!?!” We’ve been down this road before. There’s a shoe-eating monster that follows Lifa to school and rugby practices. (I don’t want to talk about it.) BUT WE HAVEN’T BEEN ANYWHERE. We looked high and low. We annoyed the ever-lovin’ everything out of Chris, who had apparently assumed his rest day would be restful. 

Benjamin (and his mom) were about to lose it, so Lifa found the one other pair of shoes he has that still fit, put them on as fast as broken elbows would allow (NOT FAST), and we were off! Before we got to the end of our street, I stopped in my tracks. “Lifa, is that your shoe!?!” We found ONE of Lifa’s tennis shoes on the side of the road. We walked back and forth looking for the other one as we put the pieces together. For the first time EVER... because of the rain and forever-dampness, Chris and Lifa left their shoes outside our front door over night. And, on that first time, their shoes had been stolen. 

We hadn’t even considered it would happen. They were far out of view from the road.  A person would have to jump over a fence, walk down our long driveway, and make it past an activated alarm beam. They would have to come RIGHT up to our front door. Right outside the space we share family meals and life together. Way too close for comfort. 

Chris was devastated. Lifa’s shoes were inexpensive sports shoes that needed to be replaced anyway. He outgrows shoes every time he eats lunch. Chris had specialty shoes that were exactly what he needed for his hamstring to recover and to meet his running goals. He loved them and still had a lot of good use to get out of them. They were expensive and are out of stock everywhere in South Africa currently because everything is out of stock everywhere in South Africa right now. 

Chris lost an entire day searching for a way to replace them. In the end, he was able to purchase some shoes from a store that is going out of business that will hold him over until South Africa gets restocked. We are not in a crisis, and we aren’t walking around barefoot in the cold. We are even more aware of how blessed we are that we could worry about replacing specialty shoes when most of the world covets any kind of shoes. 

We’ve been on lockdown so long. It’s easy to feel insulated and tucked into our sweet little family. It’s jarring to think of someone right outside our front door. To realize that there are eyes on us often enough to know what shoes we wear and the one day we left them outside. 

I hate to say that I think this story paints a picture of my spiritual reality as well. I’ve found a comfortable way with my family and ministry in our home.  It’s as easy to let the guard on my heart and mind down as it is to leave shoes out. There was a good reason to leave the shoes out, and I can find a lot of good reasons to stay occupied with other things during this time. 

Scripture tells us there’s an enemy that comes to steal, kill and destroy. He  prowls around like a roaring lion. I’ve got to keep my mind active and alert, my heart set on heaven, and my feet ready to bring it down to earth even if it’s from inside the walls of my house. Hey, enemy of the night... You snuck past our alarm. You came right up to our front door. You got our shoes. But you reminded us to stay alert and stand on guard. In the natural and the supernatural. And you’re not going to keep my husband from running!