Is That Door Locked?

Voice of Prayer

Saw this movie the other night. One scene was three people trying to get a door to open, but the door was almost frozen shut. It took two of the three people to open the frozen door. One of the younger men mentioned putting the oil to it.
Now this specific story-line is from the early 1950's and was located within a church with a priest. Yes, I must admit it is one of mystery and intrigue and that night it had a very squeaky door without oil to make it turn on its hinges easily. Of course, the door could make some scary noises in the mid-night hour, but the funny thing from this story timeline, they mentioned the oil can and to get it to oil those hinges!
 Now many probably turning fifty today would not know what an oil can is for, well, except for our son-in-law......he probably would know.
And anyone watching the Wizard of Oz, from the 1930's would know by relating to the character of the tin man. But anyone else might not have an idea of the need for an oil can. Of course, today, we like WD-40. I mean, it will remove grease from laminated floors with one quick spray!.
But then hydrogen peroxide will remove grease from new carpeting as well. ( and I mean a real chunk of black greasy, grease on soft pastel orange carpet)

There are many doors. They open up areas to be visited, like in a movie theater or to a church! Doors can be old, new, fairly new, molded out of wood products, made from plastic, can be metal, glass or just plain wood. You could paint some, remove some, and even replace the really used doors, but what about a door that is " not used"?

I saw this movie the other night, and it was made in the early 1950's and one door was boarded up     (on the inside of the upstairs room), not to be used at all, yet the covering was just a few boards, and the covering was made with hinges to swing open. Odd I thought, when the thought was to board it up and not be used at all. Yet some clever one made it real work to create a door that could swing open using actual hinges and those pieces of plain wood just nailed together was to cover another actual door!

Proverbs 26:14 Amplified Bible
14 As the door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man [ move not from his place] upon his bed.
Now in the Middle East, a door made thousands of years ago was not made with hinges but rather with pivots. Of course, too, the doors were made of stone (slabs of stone) which made for a very weighty ( and very serious) door to handle.



I wonder sometimes about folks who never leave the place they were born to visit another place: like another state, or another country. You know those are doorways too!
I wonder sometimes why so many stay pretty close to their childhood start. I also wonder why many will not try doors they might otherwise overlook while passing by on a walk or driving by while looking for a gas station. I remember us going to an art museum and a rather small science museum, and also a wild west museum. All were so different, with so many different names who either painted, collected the artifacts of bones, pottery and glass sifted out for all to see or made history while the west was being populated by vast numbers of many different people who all had one purpose. That purpose was to know God who created heaven and earth and create something out of nothing in the 'ole west!

Many doors were open to those who painted great works of art. Many doors were opened to those who searched by sifting through sand and dust that covered great works of the pyramids and the pharaohs, yes those buried deep beneath the surface of the ground.......forever covered in mysteries, darkness and dirt!
I think of those places we have visited and although all were fun and done in different periods of my life, yet the only door that remains is the one I think people, yes many people overlook. I believe many miss the DOOR! They will miss the DOOR that counts.
I see people standing in line to get to be 1st at a new casino. I see them standing to buy that lottery ticket. I see them standing in line to get................!(something, anything)

Jesus said this and was recorded for our benefit. Found in John 10:9 I am the Door; anyone who enters in through Me will be saved (will live). He will come in and he will go out [freely] and will find pasture.

Entering through Jesus we have a fresh life! In Him we gain to move freely by His wisdom, power and love. Without Him we can do nothing.
If we enter by Him, we are saved. we find pasture to lie down in, be refreshed by residing by still waters to walk in paths of righteousness for His name sake.

In that DOOR, we find the Bread of Life! John 6:35 and Jesus said to them, " I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. ( see also John 6:48)
When we enter that DOOR, we find the Chief Shepherd. 1 Peter 5:4 and when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.
Entering that DOOR, we come face to face with the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. (John 1:29)
We encounter the Lord of All (Acts 10:36-39) 36 the word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ---He is Lord of All---37 that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached; 38 how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.
We encounter the Lord of Glory ( 1 Corinthians 2:7-9) 7 but we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God ordained before the ages for our glory, 8 which none of the rulers of this age knew; for had they known, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. 9 But as it is written: "Eye has not seen, nor hear heard, Nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him.

Yes, some folks thousands of years ago encountered doors made of slabs of stone. Whatever their thought of or way of life, they encountered doors of stone only to be put behind one when they died. To return back to the dust, gather their bones up  about a year later by loved ones who remained and carry said bones to a family burial plot.

Is that Door locked? Have you tried to enter?

Have you pushed hard to open....? Have you mentioned the Door Keeper.........Jesus? For it is in Him we find the Bread of Life, the Chief Shepherd, the Lord of All, the Lord of Glory. Oh we find so much more when we open that door and take steps forward in him.

Proverbs 10:29 Amplified Bible teaches us that the way of the Lord is strength and a stronghold to the upright, but it is destruction to the workers of iniquity.

And Proverbs 10:20 mentions this: 20 that the tongues of those who are upright and in right standing with God are as choice silver; the minds of those who are wicked and out of harmony with God are of little value.

YIKES!

Opening up to Jesus, and make our way with Him we have strength. He becomes our Stronghold in time of trouble. But the main thing, He is our salvation.

Will we see Him, see His ways and act to move through or be satisfied where we began? That bed is no place to stay. Some rest at night to be refreshed is good, but to lay down and remain is not healthy for anyone! Remaining to stay within the confines that is only for comfort is sad indeed when we can touch other people's lives and maybe visit some odd type museums. We must go through some doors to experience life. There are doors opened to attend school and be educated to write and read. Doors are open to attend high schools and colleges and yes even jobs. Doors are open to marriage, children and grand-children. Doors are open, but the one that really matters will count in the long-haul.
There is a Door talked about in Revelation 3:8 and this one is mentioned in the letter to the church in Sardis. 8 I know your [record of] works and what you are doing. See! I have set before you a door wide open which no one is able to shut; I know that you have but little power, and yet you have kept My Word and guarded My Message and have not renounced or denied My name. 11 I am coming quickly; hold fast what you have, so that no one may rob you and deprive you of your crown.

Yes Jesus is returning! He returns for His believers, who trust in Him, have sought His face and to hear Him speak. Those who have entered will have a safe place,  a victorious place....He is the faithful and true Witness...He is the origin and Beginning and Author of all of God's creation.

Unlock that door.......and speak His name..........He will be found!

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IT'S JUST A GREAT EARTHQUAKE!

Acts 16:25-34.........25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed. 27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself. 28 But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, "Do yourself no harm, for we are all here." 29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas. 30 And he brought them out and said, "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?" 31 So they said, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household." 32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house. 33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes. And immediately he and all his family were baptized. 34 Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.
NKJV

Now in Acts 16:16-24, we find out how Paul and Silas ended up in a prison. People are all connected in some way, and we see it here in this passage. Paul had cast the spirit out of the young girl who followed them around.

Because of their act on the spirit, the girl's masters seized Paul and Silas. They dragged them to the the marketplace to authorities of the city. Being led to the magistrates, the order was given for Paul and Silas to be beaten with rods and after receiving many stripes to their bodies, they were taken by the jailer to the inner prison and their feet were secured in the stocks.

As we find Paul and Silas praying and singing about midnight, we find that the prisoners were listening to them and those hymns to God!
Suddenly there was a "great earthquake". Not a 3.2, but a great earthquake..........so great that the foundations of the prison were shaken, and all the doors opened immediately from the force. Interesting that all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed. The keeper of the prison was also awakened. Interesting he was awakened out of his sleep. Did he not hear the singing and praise going on? Yet, it states that Paul yelled out.............loudly......not to kill himself.
Yes, a violent shaking and all the doors of the prison opened. The keeper drew his sword to kill himself as he was alarmed that the prisoners probably had left the prison.

Paul and Silas were exerting a godly influence, when staying in the same place they had been chained. They were exerting some influence, when Paul told the keeper to do himself no harm. They were exerting godly influence in giving the "keeper" the thing he needed. "Sirs, what must I do to be saved?"
He called them "sirs"! Okay, they smell like stinky poop. It was probably the stinkiest place on earth and being in the depths of the prison probably proved to be hot and foul! This guy calls them sirs!

In those moments, when something occurs as the "great earthquake", a 9-11, or F-5 tornado, would we be there, standing and delivering the message of life to be saved? If you were locked up in chains and they fell off, would you stand or would you run? ( is it every man for himself?)
I think of those who, if they experienced it today, would say, "the Lord has loosed the chains, and I am out of here." If that great earthquake occurred in or around a prison and the doors flew open, how many do you think would flee the area without thinking twice about it?
I was thinking of the movie "Fugitive" and the train wreck. There were a lot of convicts making their way off that train for freedom!


When we talk of the salvation message, we think of what we were expected to do when presented with the same as the "keeper". It is knowing that we are to be loyal to One. It is knowing we need saving. Once conversion came, we became the family of God. We had to make a choice.
These men had to make a choice to stay in the prison even though it was "wide open" and nothing held them. But one thing held them. It was their character. They were connected to God!

One dictionary defines character as " the complex of mental and ethical traits marking a person." Character is said to be the stable and distinct quality that is built into an individual which determines his or her response of circumstances.

Our character is determined by that one that rules it. We can see in scripture that Peter confirms Jesus' words. Let's look into the book of Acts.
Acts 5:29-32................. 29 But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: "We ought to obey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. 31 Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey Him." 
NKJV

Where does our loyalty lie? Was I forced to make a decision for Christ? No, I was not forced, but I certainly knew I had it placed before me and the question had to be answered. I NEEDED A SAVIOR!  Yes, I received Jesus as Lord of my life. 
But that "loyalty"  has to be in place every day and not only on "church day"!.
When the world puts pressure on us, and we must make decisions, is Jesus on the throne of our hearts, AND what will our character reveal?
Will we stand as Paul and Silas, and bring others to Jesus.........or flee like Chicken Little.............the sky is falling........kind of thing........."should I stay, or should I go"?
Will we revert to the past and use those old habits to rule our decisions or will we keep Jesus seated on our hearts? Running in when a catastrophe occurs, as in 9-11, is something most have to think about doing. For those like firemen, police officers, and paramedics, it is something they do not have to think or meditate on, they are ready for it! For me, seeing that ash and smoke rising and falling to create the sense of late evening, gave me the shutters to the core of my being.

When we read on about Paul and Silas, the "keeper" brought them out, and cleaned their wounds. He took them home, fed them and his whole house was saved!
Standing still when adversity comes, IS MUCH LIKE that silence that comes after the great earthquake. I know for I have been in an earthquake and have heard the silence after things stop crashing and the ground stops rumbling like a bowling ball against pins in a bowling alley all going at once.........and then silence!
Standing still, everything is torn apart, nothing looks familiar and WHAT? Standing still in the silence when a word comes that your step-father has passed suddenly and your mother is taken to the hospital. What will those circumstances reveal about our character?
A WORD COMES, AND IT IS NOT A GOOD WORD!
No one is exempt from this one thing! Paul and Silas were not exempt from them.
What will be revealed in your life, when the enemy comes with a circumstance? When the moment comes, AND THOSE thoughts and pressures build about that circumstance, will you or I sing? These men went from beatings to singing, to a great earthquake, to giving the message of salvation to others.


Today, we pray in Jesus' holy name. Father, we set ourselves to pray and not lose heart.(Hebrews 12:3)
Lord, we know not what obstacles we will face today. But we thank You for illumination in situations that we cannot understand at this time. Our hearts are set on You. Whatever the circumstances today, whatever heartache, you have given us the ability to hear You speak in these situations.
2 Peter tells us that God has given us all things that pertain to life and godly living. It is understandable then that wisdom and revelation has been given to us as well and that we have access to it. 

Father, we pray to be those who will sing praise to You through the most horrific of times, and give YOUR message of salvation when all others may be fleeing the house. We desire to be those who co-operate with YOU and receive instruction as we lean into YOU and receive faith for this walk. Today, we pray to hear YOU in every circumstance we face. The surface of everything may look good to us, but You Lord have all knowledge as YOU see the end from the beginning. Today, we pray to be those who will listen and know Your voice. So when any catastrophic event may occur, to shake up our lives, we know hearing YOUR voice will give us the direction in and through those hidden dangers, obstacles and traps the enemy may have placed in our path to cause us to stumble. Trouble may come, and pain may come into our hearts for the loss of a loved one, or where we stand is no longer familiar to us, but our every focus is on YOU, the Great I AM in our midst. In the midst of these trials, our names remain the same, the place may look different, and there may even be those smells of smoke and the sounds of disaster, but we remain and abide in YOU, our Fortress and Hightower. Praise be to God, the Faithful One, the Everlasting One, The Great "I AM" ! AMEN.

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