LOVE FALLING ON MY FEET
“[He] began to wash the disciples' feet…” – Jn. 13:5
Dear Jesus,
Today, I found myself filled with much gratitude as I retraced our first encounter.
On this Holy Thursday, over 20 years ago, you found me in the middle of the night: lost, broken and hopeless. You reached for my hands and said that you had been looking for me; I was afraid of you and refused to let you near. Pain and sadness filled your eyes. You motioned for me to sit on a chair nearby. Then without a word, you brought an empty bowl, knelt and stooped before me. A moment of silence passed when I saw your body shook; something painful awakened in me.
I didn’t know at the time, but I thought that you had abandoned me when tragedy knocked at my door. I was angry and had distanced myself from you since.
There you were, before me that evening, all shaken up. When you finally looked at me, a droplet of love rolled down your cheek and onto my foot. Another fell, then another, and then there was a downpour of love falling on my feet. My heart ached. Tears of what, I wasn’t sure, raced down and settled on my feet. You gently smiled then bent down to wash my feet with our tears.
I held out my little fingers to catch a drop of your love and secured it in my hands.
Since that evening, you’ve visited me often and have invited me to join you on the journey home. It was always the same scene when we meet, but each time I was less hesitant and a little more trusting in you. I allowed you to inch a bit closer and to lead me a little further on our journey.
Today, the droplets of love that I’ve gathered over the years have overflowed.
Thank you, Jesus, for your humble gesture of love all these years.
After you wash my feet tonight, may I join you in cleaning the feet of another? Whom among us are you inviting me to love Jesus?
Your friend,
Maddie
Picture Credit: Madelina Nguyen