“I am the Lord your God,
who teaches you what is best for you,
who directs you in the way you should go.”
Isaiah 48:17b NIV
My whimsical look at doors last week may have been confusing. The doors God opens or closes are not physical doors, but opportunities. Here are some truths about those doors.
God doesn’t open a door and shove us through it. We have a choice.
When a job at the library opened up, I was anxious. It had been a long time since I’d worked outside my home. That morning, even before I filled out an application, I prayed. “Is this the right thing for me? Should I do this?”
And I felt God saying, “The job is yours if you want it. But you don’t have to take it. Understand though, that you will miss a great blessing if you decide not to.”
I applied, interviewed and got the job. And the blessing I received over the next 12 years still warms me.
Even when it’s a door we would refuse, God has a reason and plan for it.
When my cancer came back for the third (and final) time, I was devastated. The surgery would be extensive, the recovery long. The scars – on face and neck – would be impossible to hide.
“I don’t want to do this,” I told my husband.
“You don’t have to,” he replied.
But I did have to. Cancer is evil and must be fought will all available tools. Thank God for those tools!
recovering from that surgery, I discovered that there can be joy in spite of circumstances. I might never have learned that otherwise.
Years later, I helped start a church-based Cancer Support Group. This Blog is the direct descendant of that group.
Not everyone will see or understand your door.
When my darling sister-in-law in New York was diagnosed with a rare and deadly form of cancer, I began to phone her every evening to listen, love and talk to her about God. That was my mission. My husband, initially distracted by the enormous telephone bills, agreed. Sherry died 3 years later, strengthened in her faith and able to help those around her find their own faith.
And that’s the door to walk though.