I was at church one day and went looking for my boys. I found them in a Sunday school classroom before the teacher had arrived. I told them they didn’t need to be in there.
My seven-year-old, Isaac, replied, “The door was unlocked.”
I told him, “Just because a door is unlocked doesn’t mean it’s meant for you to go through it.”
There is a valuable lesson in that.
Sometimes opportunities present themselves, but before we pursue them, we need to pray and ask God if they are truly His will for our lives.
I remember hearing a story years ago about a man who was offered what seemed like a golden opportunity. The only catch was that he would have to move his family. Before making his decision, he asked whether there was an Apostolic church in the area. He was told there was not.
He turned the opportunity down because eternity was more important than opportunity.
It was later said at a family reunion that, among all of his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, only one was not living for God. That legacy was worth far more than any amount of money.
It makes me wonder about Demas. Paul wrote, For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world… (2 Timothy 4:10 KJV). Scripture never tells us exactly what pulled him away, but something in this present world captured his heart. Perhaps it appeared to be an opportunity too good to pass up.
The disciples were also presented with an open door in John chapter 6. After many of His followers walked away, Jesus turned to the twelve and asked, Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away? (John 6:67 KJV).
Jesus gave them the freedom to leave. The door was open.
But Peter answered, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life (John 6:68 KJV).
Not every unlocked door is one God intends for us to walk through.
When new opportunities come your way, don’t mistake an open door for God’s direction. Bring every opportunity before Him in prayer. Ask Him whether this door is one He has opened, or one He is testing you to leave closed.
Sometimes the greatest act of faith is not walking through an open door. Sometimes it is walking away from it.
Joshua 24:15 (KJV) And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve… but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
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