AN OPEN DOOR

We may only have a window of time to walk through a door that God has opened to us. Sometimes there is a pleasant treasure waiting on the other side. Sometimes the door will lead to a difficult task that God has asked of us. Yet still - there is only that window of time to accept or reject that open door.

1 Samuel 3:14-20 (The Message)
11-14 God said to Samuel, "Listen carefully. I'm getting ready to do something in Israel that is going to shake everyone up and get their attention. The time has come for me to bring down on Eli's family everything I warned him of, every last word of it. I'm letting him know that the time's up. I'm bringing judgment on his family for good. He knew what was going on, that his sons were desecrating God's name and God's place, and he did nothing to stop them. This is my sentence on the family of Eli: The evil of Eli's family can never be wiped out by sacrifice or offering."
15 Samuel stayed in bed until morning, then rose early and went about his duties, opening the doors of the sanctuary, but he dreaded having to tell the vision to Eli.
16 But then Eli summoned Samuel: "Samuel, my son!"
Samuel came running: "Yes? What can I do for you?"
17 "What did he say? Tell it to me, all of it. Don't suppress or soften one word, as God is your judge! I want it all, word for word as he said it to you."
18 So Samuel told him, word for word. He held back nothing.
Eli said, "He is God. Let him do whatever he thinks best."
19-21 Samuel grew up. God was with him, and Samuel's prophetic record was flawless. Everyone in Israel, from Dan in the north to Beersheba in the south, recognized that Samuel was the real thing—a true prophet of God. God continued to show up at Shiloh, revealed through his word to Samuel at Shiloh. [emphasis added]

__________________

I visited a very old church building this past Sunday night, probably about 100 years old, in the old seafaring town of Tuckerton, New Jersey. This door beckoned my entrance to the Sanctuary, though I had no idea what to expect inside. As I opened it and stepped across its threshold - the words over that door spoke to me like fresh wind from the spirit.

JESUS NEVER FAILS!

God held the sun in the sky just long enough for me to gasp at the beauty and wonder of many stained glass windows that lined each side of this old 'holy of holies'.

How many old hymns were sung in this place?
Did the people who worshiped here really know that JESUS NEVER FAILS? Do we really believe that? In the core of our being? In our marrow? Do we understand the depth of His love for us in the sacrifice He made in order to redeem us and give us access back to the Father? Do we understand His pure act of obedience to the Father - the same as Isaac to Abraham - and Abraham to God - when they trekked [slowly and laborously] up that mountain together so long ago?

Isaac trekked with Abraham - and Abraham trekked with God. Each had stepped through an imaginary door to which there was no turning back. Just like Jesus did with His Father. Each was willing to enact the part He was asked by God! Each was triumphant in the end.

Samuel's obedience was painstaking, yet God honored that obedience and blessed Samuel for the rest of his days for carrying out His instructions without a flaw!

What is your 'window of time'? What door of obedience is God asking you to walk through at this season of your life. Will it make a difference for all eternity?

Like Abraham, Isaac, Samuel and Jesus, are you willing to walk through it without looking back trusting that Jesus Never Fails?

Choosing JOY, Stephanie