βI have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut itβ (Revelation 3:8).
This prophecy concerning the church at Philadelphia doubtless looks forward to a future day, but who can deny that it contains a lesson for our day?
When, in our walk through life, God sets before us open doors of opportunity, He clearly intends us to enter them. The only way to avoid entering an open door set before us would be to deliberately sidestep the opportunity. Indeed, we often pray God for open doors when He has already set them before us and all about us.
Examine the record of Paulβs ministry and see how he thanked God for open doors (Acts 14:27; I Cor. 16:9), grasping such opportunities as God set before him on every hand. He did not pull strings or ask his friends to use their influence to gain more comfortable or better-paying positions. He faithfully entered whatever doors God set before him. His best known requests for prayer for open doors came from Rome, where a prison door had closed behind him.
May God convict us of the inconsistency of praying for open doors while failing to enter the many open doors He has set before us. May He forgive us for ever being selective about working for Him. May He give us the grace to take advantage of whatever opportunities present themselves to us, βbuying up the time because the days are evilβ (Eph. 5:16). source
