Guest Post by Lauren Coleman Thompson, Family Nurse Practitioner
My job as a Nurse Practitioner at the clinic had just begun; I felt ready and eager to treat hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, or anything else thrown at me. Excited to finally be working close to home—having grown up in a small town of similar size—I longed to get to know people, really sink in roots, and have a positive impact in my community.
Weeks turned to months, and as faces reappeared, I became more and more familiar with the people who came to us for treatment. Great; this was exactly what I wanted.
One patient, in particular, came in more frequently than others, and he always asked to have the callouses on his feet shaved down. Though never a dirty person, his poor feet definitely needed attention. About the fifth time he came in to see me with the request to have his feet worked on, I became frustrated, and honestly annoyed thinking, "I didn't go to school to shave callouses off feet!"
“I didn’t go to school to shave callouses off feet!”
Leaving the exam room exasperated, I headed down the hall to the treatment room to gather supplies. About halfway there, I felt the wind completely leave my sails; it was as if the Lord literally tapped me on the shoulder, unannounced. A flood of thoughts hit me at once: Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, on the day before He was to be crucified, washed feet, feet made dirty from traveling in a desert wearing sandals. He washed the feet of His betrayer; He washed the feet of His best friend, the one who would soon deny Him. At that moment the Spirit spoke to me, "You aren't here for you and your ego; you are here for Me, to do My work; that is why you went to school, that is why you are here."
“You aren’t here for you and your ego; you are here for Me, to do My work; that is why you went to school, that is why you are here.”
After clearing the lump in my throat, I finished grabbing my supplies and returned to Exam 5, propped up his feet on the chair, and shaved his callouses, just like the callouses on my heart had just been peeled away. Afterward, I applied lotion (something I don't usually do) and I told him how Jesus had washed and cleaned His disciples’ feet in the same way. Shortly thereafter, when he got up to leave, I thanked him; he had no idea how much that thank you really meant.
I don't write this to bring attention to myself or to garner praise; I write this because it spoke so loudly to me. Even in the mundane, the everyday activities that are less than glamorous, in the parts of life where one may just be going through the motions, God can and should be glorified.
That patient passed away a couple of years later. But every time I shave callouses, I think about this encounter. With a new perspective, I sit down on the floor, which usually gets sideways looks, but opens doors for conversation. Then, as I am reminded that our Lord and Savior got down on the ground and washed feet, I try to share that with patients as we sit there together.
We make excuses for not speaking about God or witnessing. Yet sometimes it’s just getting on the same level as people, being transparent and real.
God told us to "Go out into the world and make disciples,” to be His hands and feet, to serve one another, to love one another, to live out His life in our actions; and when necessary, to use words.
Jesus provided us a model, even in the hours approaching His death. We talk and joke about what we would do if we only had one day left on this earth; Jesus sat down and washed feet.
Lauren Coleman Thompson, FNP-C
“We talk and joke about what we would do if we only had one day left on this earth; Jesus sat down and washed feet.”
Living With Eternal Intentionality®
“And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me’” (Matthew 25:40).
Put yourself in Lauren’s shoes there in her clinic. How would you have reacted to the man’s ongoing return to have his callouses removed?
What do you learn from her vulnerability and authenticity? Her change of heart?
When have you had a similar experience where God needed to remind you of His purpose for your life?
Meet Lauren! She is a follower of Jesus, a wife, and a mother. Wise beyond her years, she desires, “To Glorify Jesus in All That I Do!” It is my honor to be her aunt.
