Sensible Shoes

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Sensible Shoes is a novel about a journey: a journey of prayer, healing, and self-discovery. It's the story of four women who meet at the New Hope Retreat Center in Kingsbury, Michigan, to explore a deeper life with God.

Here's the story behind the story:

In September of 2008 I began leading a weekly women's spiritual formation group at the church where my husband and I pastor. I had led many kinds of groups over the years--Bible studies, prayer groups, pastoral care groups, and book discussions--and I thought I knew what this Monday morning group of twelve women would become. I expected to study spiritual disciplines together, using one of the many excellent resources about how Christ is formed in us.

By our second meeting, however, I was convinced that God was asking me to drop the idea of a book study. Instead, He was inviting me to trust Him to journey into an unknown place without a syllabus or a curriculum. I began to introduce to the group some of the spiritual disciplines that had been life-giving to me: lectio divina, the prayer of examen, the labyrinth, journaling, spiritual direction, and contemplative prayer. We learned to sit with stillness and silence. Our time together became sacred space where we encountered the living God. The women grew to deeply trust one another, confessing their sins and heartaches so that they could be more open to receiving God's healing love and power.

In one of our first meetings together, one of the women in the group looked around the circle, commenting, "Everybody here is wearing really cute, but sensible shoes!" The phrase stuck, and we began to refer to ourselves as the "Sensible Shoes Club." God was leading us through the difficult, unpredictable, and sometimes treacherous terrain of the inner life, and we needed sensible shoes for the journey. We also needed one another.

As we walked together, we began to witness stunning and breathtakingly beautiful transformation. The Spirit was healing old wounds, opening blind eyes, and setting captives free. I began to sense that God was inviting me to share the story of the group by creating characters who were also learning to walk closely with God. 

And so, Meg, Hannah, Mara, and Charissa emerged from my imagination, surprising me with their own stories of struggle and grace.

None of the characters represent "real" people. But they do wrestle with real issues: letting go of control, trusting God, people-pleasing, perfectionism, hiding behind roles and busyness, fear, regret, guilt, and shame. Though the details are different, their stories are our stories of healing and redemption.

I pray that you will find echoes of your own story resonating with the lives of the characters. I also pray that you'll find trustworthy companions for the journey. My hope is that this website will be a resource for you as you say yes to God's invitations to travel deep into His heart of love.

Come take a sacred journey.

And may you know God's near presence as you walk with Him.

Sharon Garlough Brown