John 13:1-17

As a liberal Methodist preacher's daughter, I grew up learning about certain passages of the bible more than others. Somehow I was spared the ritual of memorizing passages in games or something that the "others" did. My parents believe in walking the walking and hoping others see it and want to join in the walk.

I did not grow up in a liberal Methodist town. We were like aliens. Our church building has a very unique construction. It is round and circular because God's love can never be cornered. It is also bare concrete and stucco because Man still wants to get paid!! This year we will be celebrating our 50th anniversary as a church. So much has changed and so much is still the same.

A few months ago, I got a massage. She began it my soaking my feet in hot towels and massaging them. It felt really good. She said she believed spouses should do this for each other after hard days to show caring and I really thought WOW!

You see I knew there was a scripture about this. (I did have to look it up and I used my concordance from college not the internet!) I knew Jesus had washed his disciples feet. The most powerful part of this to me is that our Teacher our Lord washed our feet. And then sent us to wash others. As a kid, I had watched my parents perform this ritual in different classes they taught. Once at the end of a Bible Study, once as my mother had begun a new ministry, she washed all the high school students involved. It is a little scary to think of washing someone's feet, if you don't know them, but it is truly a uplifting spiritual response to know you have given that to someone.

Combining the sensual loving and caring of washing and massaging someone's feet with Jesus words to wash one another's feet brings to me the idea of love and spirituality together. I will never know if my massage therapist did it because it felt good, or if she was also spreading God's love to me.