Back several years ago, before Kristy and I married, we went to a yard sale at one of her relatives’ houses on Phillips Street in Dyersburg. There is typically very little at a yard sale that catches my eye. I have very specific interests. However, at this particular yard sale the man of the house was selling a good pair of thick, insulated rubber boots. Never one to pass up a bargain I paid five dollars for them and took them home to Martin. A few years later Kristy became my bride and the boots moved with us to Memphis where we would spend two years while I finished up some schooling. Afterward we packed up all we owned, including the boots, and moved to Middle Tennessee for three and a half years while I preached for a small congregation. Those boots always proved to be a reliable companion. They have served multiple purposes and have never failed to keep my feet dry and warm. But recently I severed my working relationship in Middle Tennessee to accept a job offer back in Dyersburg. And after months of looking for rental property to house our small family until we could sell our other house, we happened upon a bargain…on Phillips Street. Yes. Those boots I got at such a steal seven years earlier now reside just houses down from the very same location from which they came. They truly came full circle.
In a much more significant way, our lives need to be a reflection of the same circumstance. As babes born into this world, we enter in a state of innocence. We carry no guilt from any others. In fact, the Bible declares that God holds a special place in His heart for children (Matthew 18:3). However, like those boots, we never really know where life is going to take us. We should have a firm grasp on the direction of our lives spiritually, but many other variables are outside of our control causing life to often carry unexpected hurdles. But wherever life may take us physically or emotionally, if our eyes are set toward our goal in Christ then our God who delivered us into this world shall then one day take us home reconciled unto Him… and we too shall have come full circle.