I need a pedicure.  Badly.  I need to go to the nail salon and have the ladies speak in a foreign language under their breath to each other about how bad my feet are,(or so I imagine).  They do magic on my toes.  They can take my train wreck and turn into something lovely.

Lately, I’ve been having a little fun with changing up the colors, painting my big toe a different color than the rest.  The gals in the salon look at me as if to say, “are you sure that’s what you want me to do to your feet?”  I nod enthusiastically and they graciously oblige me.  At the end they always smile and laugh and say, “I like!”  And I smile, too.  It’s just color and they’re just toes, but there’s something about pretty feet that makes a girl feel good from the ground up.

God talks about beautiful feet.  In Isaiah 52:7 it says – How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, “Your God reigns!”  Now THAT’S the kind of good looking feet I want to have!  Feet that are quick to take me to encourage others, build them up, share Jesus’ good news of life and salvation with people.  Feet that help me stand and move and go where God is leading me, to the people He wants me to meet and know and love.

I have a feeling that the beautiful feet He’s talking about aren’t so pretty to look at.  They are hard-working feet.  Feet that get tired from giving and serving.  Feet that sweat and get dirty because they are helping others.  Feet that form calluses and get dry from overuse and exposure to difficult paths.

No wonder Jesus was a big fan of people washing each other’s feet.  People’s “beautiful” feet.  They were worn and tired and used to serve and share good news with people all over the map.  Lots of walking.  Lots of dirt and rocks and sand.  By washing the feet of others, they were serving the “servers”.  They were refreshing the beautiful feet of those that would soon go out all over again and do the exact same thing. And it went both ways.

Jesus washed his disciples’ feet in John chapter 13.  They were resistant, but He was insistent.  He was preparing and refreshing the feet of those that would go out into the world and share His name, His life, with others after He was gone.

Jesus, take my feet – my less than beautiful feet – and make them beautiful in the way You see them as beautiful.  Prepare them.  Refresh them and send the out to whomever You ask me to share Your good news with.  Use them to walk Your walk and dance Your dance and to ask others to join the path and the dance floor. May I refresh the beautiful feet of others so that they can walk and dance another day, too.