Walking in Jesus’ Shoes 穿起耶稣的鞋
Dexu Xia
Clothe yourselves with compassion. Colossians 3:12
What would it be like to walk in the shoes of royalty? Angela Kelly, the daughter of a dockworker and nurse, knows. She was also the official dresser for the late Queen Elizabeth for the last two decades of the monarch’s life. One of her responsibilities was to break-in the aging Queen’s new shoes by walking in them around the palace grounds. There was a reason for it: compassion for an elderly woman who sometimes was required to stand for extended periods at ceremonies. Because they wore the same shoe size, Kelly was able to save her some discomfort.
Kelly’s personal touch in her care for Queen Elizabeth makes me think of Paul’s warm encouragement to the church in Colossae (an area in modern Turkey): “clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience” (Colossians 3:12). When our lives are “built on” Jesus (2:7 nlt), we become “God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved” (3:12). He helps us take off our “old self” and “put on the new self” (vv. 9–10)—living out the identity of those who love and forgive others because God has loved and forgiven us (vv. 13–14).
All around us are those who need us to “walk in their shoes” and have compassion for them in the day-to-day challenges of life. When we do, we walk in the shoes (or the sandals) of a humble king—Jesus—who always has compassion for us.
By: James Banks
How has God had compassion for you? Who can you show His love to today?
Thank You, Jesus, for Your forgiveness and love. Help me to receive it, and also to give it away.
要穿上怜悯。—歌罗西书3章12节，和合本修订版
穿上王族的鞋走路会是什么感觉？安吉拉·凯莉（Angela Kelly）就知道这一点，她父亲是码头工人，母亲是护士。凯莉在已故伊莉莎白女王在世的最后二十年里，担任女王的御用服装顾问。凯莉的职责之一是穿上女王的新鞋，在宫殿里走来走去，为年迈的女王磨合新鞋。凯莉这样做的原因是体恤女王年纪大了，有时需要在某些典礼上长时间站立。由于她们穿的鞋子同样大小，所以凯莉能先穿上女王的新鞋，代替女王承受穿着新鞋的不适。
凯莉对伊莉莎白女王无微不至的关怀和体恤，让我想起保罗对歌罗西教会（位于现今的土耳其）的亲切鼓励﹕“要穿上怜悯、恩慈、谦虚、温柔和忍耐”（歌罗西书3章12节，和合本修订版）。当我们的生命在耶稣里“生根建造”（2章7节），我们就成为“上帝的选民、圣洁蒙爱的人”（3章12节）。祂帮助我们脱去“旧人”，“穿上了新人”（9-10节），好让我们能活出新的身份，去爱和宽恕他人，因为上帝爱我们，并且已经饶恕了我们（13-14节）。
我们周围都有一些人需要你我设身处地理解他们的难处，在他们面对日常生活的挑战时给予关怀。当我们这样做，就有如穿上君王耶稣的鞋子（或凉鞋），跟随这位总是怜悯我们的君王的脚步。作者： 庞雅各
上帝如何怜悯你？今天你可以向谁表达上帝的爱？
上帝阻挡骄傲的人，赐恩给谦卑的人。谦卑不会让我们受损，反而有所收获。
耶稣，感谢祢饶恕我、爱我，求祢帮助我也能以饶恕与恩慈待人