Perfect Fit

Returns.
They are frustrating.
The store is not the reason for the frustration, mind you.
It’s me!

I ordered two pairs of shoes online, in the correct size.
They were on sale.
They came…one pair was much wider than the other.
Thankfully, I was able to return them to the local store.

I bought two shirts for my husband.
He has the same type shirt at home.
I came home and realized I bought the wrong size.
They will have to be exchanged for the correct size.

When I returned the shoes, the lady behind the counter made an interesting comment.
Depending on where the shoe was made, the fit will be different.
Two identical shoes are not really identical.
Who knew?

Sometimes, you just don’t feel like trying something on in the store.
You want to see it at home…in the natural light.
That often means making a return when the purchase just doesn’t look like it should.
I have found myself thinking…that looks better on the hanger.

David volunteered to fight Goliath, who was over nine feet tall.
Saul, who was the first king of Israel, was hesitant.

“You are not able to go out against this Philistine and fight him; you are only a boy, and he has been a fighting man from his youth.” (1 Samuel 17:33)

David explained to Saul how taking care of his father’s sheep prepared him for this battle.
David also credited God for delivering him from the lion and the bear.
God protected him from anything that tried to harm his sheep.

Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you.” Then Saul dressed David in his own tunic. He put a coat of armor on him and a bronze helmet on his head. David fastened on his sword over the tunic and tried walking around, because he was not used to them.
“I cannot go in these,” he said to Saul, “because I am not used to them.” So he took them off. Then he took his staff in his hand, chose five smooth stones from the stream, put them in the pouch of his shepherd’s bag and, with his sling in hand, approached the Philistine.
(1 Samuel 17:37-40)

Can you relate to David’s predicament?
Someone else tries to determine what fits you.
Try it on for size, they say. It will be perfect for you.

All the while you are stumbling and struggling.
It just doesn’t work!
It’s not you!

David needed to take off the clothes that Saul wanted him to wear.
He needed to be David, the shepherd, with his bag and his five ordinary stones.
No flashy weaponry here.
Simple…rustic.
David being David.

How often do we try to be who we are not?
How often do we wear a persona that just doesn’t fit?
We stumble and struggle and we wonder why.

Are we courageous enough to pick up five smooth stones?
Are we afraid to be laughed at because of our simplicity?
Are we comfortable in our own skin?

As a shepherd, David was being prepared for the work he was called to do.
David gained experience as he tended the sheep.
He protected them from predators.
David’s weapons may have been crude…but they were David’s.
They were the perfect fit.

It is important for us to be the person God intended.
The person God will use for His Glory.
Nothing fancy…no polished persona.
Just true to ourselves…true to HIM.

God knows best.
Even if He calls us to use stones instead of swords, He will give us the victory.

Be strong in Him.
Nothing we put on, in and of ourselves, will ever fit.
We will stumble.
We will be ineffective.

I cannot go in these because I am not used to them.
When it is not the perfect fit, we will be uncomfortable.

It is important to be perfectly fitted.
It is the perfect fit, because God tailor-made it for you.
God doesn’t waste anything.
Every experience…every lesson is training you for the job He will have you do.

People may laugh.
They may not understand.
That’s okay.
God does.
He has fitted you perfectly with everything you need.