Honor Your Space.

There was a point in my life where I refused to wear noisy shoes. The click-clack of heels, the thump of boots, the flap of sandals: I avoided wearing them, no matter how pretty they were. My theory at the time was that noisy shoes drew attention to myself, and I was trying hard to disappear, to take up the least amount of space, to blend into the crowd.

“Honor your space.”

These are the words God spoke to me last year, shortly after my birthday. It was simple, it was profound, and it has been a lesson I’ve been learning over and over again, in different ways.

I’ve learned a lot about space. Like, what exactly is ‘my space?’

In gym class, the teachers would always have us stretch out our arms and turn in a circle: that was our space, and for that short time, we owned everything in that space.

Time. Family. Friends. Colleagues. Graduate school. Food. Church. Writing. Website. Job.

This is my space. The things and people and places that God has surrounded us with.

But it’s also more than that. It’s spiritual, emotional, physical, and emotional health, it’s the way we use our resources, it’s the way we treat people on the street.

In the coming weeks, I’ll be starting a series called “Honor Your Space,” a dive into how we can all make better use of the space we inhabit, inside and out. Including wearing the noisy shoes.

Sweet friend, I pray you know that the space you inhabit is for a unique purpose. You were made to wear the noisy shoes.