The Grace Street Blog

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.” – Deuteronomy 6:4-6

Today, I ran 0.63 miles without stopping. Due to a combination of the brutally cold weather here in South Carolina and my troubled joints, I have not been able to reach the mile marker I used to hit last summer/fall.

It was the first time in months that I reached farther than 0.5 miles without having to take a break due to my knees, ankles, or hips hurting. Though a part of me wants to hide behind the excuse of the cold, a thought kept coming to mind during these runs.

I went to a shoe store in early January where they did an analysis on the type of running shoes I truly needed based on my weaknesses and posture. As someone who used to run in high top Converse for years, I never really considered the importance of a good running shoe. But I had the privilege of getting a pair that seemed to fit just right. It honestly felt like I was walking on clouds.

Then came my first run with them. I won’t lie and say it cured all my problems. In fact, I felt strange. The cushioning threw off my depth perception as I was now about an inch or so taller and I was not used to the amount of material around the base of my shoes. If I could help you envision I probably looked like, I felt like a dog with socks on.

I ran with them for roughly the same distance I had been running (0.45ish miles), but this time, my joints didn’t lock up. My entire leg just felt unusual. Not in pain, but not comfortable.

The next few runs, I continued to take a break just short of half a mile because of the strange feeling in my legs and feet. I couldn’t quite place my finger on what it was or why, but just when I was going to go back to my old sketchers that were a half size too small, God put a word on my heart.

Posture matters. Change is uncomfortable, but there is a purpose.

The people who gave me the shoes took a scan and were very knowledgeable on what good foot support looks like. They were interested in helping me heal from the pain I have allowed myself to live in for so long due to my lack of valuing quality over affordability.

I knew their intentions were good and I could trust their wisdom, but the damage I spent years creating was not going to heal overnight. So I felt convicted and kept running with the shoes.

There was a purpose behind being temporarily uncomfortable. If I could continue to run with the shoes, not only would my feet have the support they need, but my knees and hips would be relieved of the horrible pain I had gotten so used to enduring as well. It was a slow, but much deeper healing process than I ever knew was possible.

Looking at Deuteronomy, we find God direct Israel to remain obedient. To follow His laws and love Him with all their heart, mind, and soul. But the laws are not just simple things like, “Be kind”. They covered everything from how you sacrifice offerings, to what you can and cannot eat, to how you teach your children. The cost of following God was one that challenged them in every area of their life.

They were to be set apart. But not for nothing.

After nearly every command or reminder to be careful and obey the law, we see the sweet words, “so that”. Those two words excite me so much as it prefaces the great purpose behind the way God calls us to live. He does not demand without reason. He calls us to live set apart so that, we may live with Him in unity for eternity.

When we are told to do something, a battle rages within us. Either, we can follow the command whether or not we understand the significance of it, or, we can rebel with pride, believing we know a better way.

The Israelites in Deuteronomy were chosen by God, witnessed incredible miracles, and were freed from slavery, yet continuously struggled with obeying the One who rescued them.

Countless times we see them fall into fear, idolatry, or just plain rebellion. But God did not explode in anger, demanding blind obedience. Instead, He reminded them of who He was and who they were because of Him. By that, they were not only given a lifestyle to follow, but a clear and good purpose behind it.

Turn to chapter 6 as we read;

“These are the commands, decrees and laws the Lord your God directed me to teach you to observe in the land that you are crossing the Jordan to possess, so that you, your children and their children after them may fear the Lord your God as long as you live by keeping all His decrees and commands that I give you, and so that you may enjoy long life. Hear Israel, and be careful to obey, so that it may go well with you and that you may increase greatly in a land flowing with milk and honey, just as the Lord, the God of your ancestors, promised you.”

The Israelites were standing before the land the Lord promised their ancestors long ago. And they stood there with a choice. To love the Lord and follow Him, the One who led them to new life. Or to reject Him, forfeiting the land and the presence of the One who loved them so deeply.

When we read that, we think it’s a no-brainer. But how often do we stand before a choice so similar, yet choose to go our own way? Whether it be pride, fear of the unknown, discomfort, or just flat out rejection of God’s ways, it’s quite common we choose to remain the lord of our own lives.

When I reached 0.63 miles, I realized my legs didn’t hurt nor did they experience that strange uncomfortable feeling as much. Yes, I still kick myself sometimes or stumble because I am not quite used to the style of shoes, but there is not a day I would trade them for the ones I used to wear. It’s not because they cost more or look cooler, but because they support, heal, and give me the chance to go much further on runs. Behind the temporary discomfort was a good purpose.

When I accepted Christ, I was battling many of the struggles I still have today. I am aware spiritual warfare will continue, but I am okay with that because there is not a day I would go back to being “comfortable” in the chains of sin and shame I lived in before. Choosing Christ over myself is a daily decision but praise God it is not blind obedience. He makes His ways clear and reveals His heart so openly.

My dear friend, I pray that sin and shame do not mask themselves as comfort in your life. When we choose to stray from the One who created us, we are inflicting damage on ourselves that we don’t even recognize. Because behind comfort in sin is the enemy who is driven by a desire to seek, kill, and destroy us. But it does not have to be that way.

After 40 years in the wilderness, I am sure the Israelites were not in the best mood. Despite the pain they endured as slaves in Egypt, they constantly pleaded to go back. Their minds were set on living in whatever was easier, not whatever was Holy. God called them chosen, set apart, and redeemed because of His great love for them. He gave them a reason for every breath in their lungs. Because behind the laws, commands, and guidance is a God desperate to restore the harmony we broke in the Garden of Eden.

What other plans would we choose over a God with such great love behind it all?

Thoughts to consider:

Where in your life have you grown accustomed to pain because it feels familiar?

Do you believe that God’s commands are rooted in love and restoration, not restriction?

How does remembering God’s “so that” reshape the way you view obedience in this season?

Consider what could change if you saw God’s instructions were not barriers to freedom, but invitations into deeper wholeness.

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts.” – Deuteronomy 6:4-6