The Challenge Of The Open Doors

THE CHALLENGE OF THE OPEN DOOR OF TRUST…

By Wade Martin Hughes, Sr. Kyfingers@aol.com (YouTube: Wade Hughes)

OPEN DOORS CAME IN MANY WAYS!

Seems there was a lot of police activity and sirens in the area. This was one of the hottest days of the summer. A lady got out of her car and locked her keys in the car. Her precious little baby was in the back seat. She fell to her knees and started praying: PLEASE GOD HELP ME! MY BABY WILL DIE TRAPPED IN MY HOT CAR. PLEASE GOD, SEND ME HELP, NOW!

About that time a grubby looking man in an orange jump suit came running by… The lady begged the dirty grubby man… PLEASE, SIR, COULD YOU PLEASE HELP ME? I HAVE LOCKED MY KEYS IN THE CAR! WORSE THAN THAT MY BABY IS CRYING IN THE BACK SEAT. PLEASE HELP ME.

In a matter of seconds the old man had her door open and reached in and calmed the baby and took it out of the baby seat and handed him to the mother. The lady was hugging and thanking the man… She said: “SIR, YOU ANSWERED MY PRAYERS, YOU SAVED MY BABY IN A MATTER OF SECONDS BY OPENING THE DOOR WITHOUT BREAKING ANY WINDOWS.

About that time 4 or 5 police cars with their lights flashing pulled around them. The police jumped out with their guns drawn. The lady could not understand, what’s going on here? The policemen grabbed the dirty man and handcuffed him. The lady asked: WHY? The officer explained: THIS MAN IS A TERRIBLE CRIMINAL. He has stolen hundreds of cars and has been in prison for years… He escaped prison and we have been looking for him several days. We heard he was in the area of the mall and now he is captured… The officers loaded him in the back seat and away they went.

The lady dropped to her knees and prayed a prayer of thanksgiving… LORD, I ASKED YOU TO HELP ME TO GET IN MY CAR AND BE DOG GONE IF YOU DIDN’T PROVIDE ME WITH A PROFESSIONAL TO SAVE MY SON. THANK YOU GOD FOR THIS OPEN DOOR.

IN ENGLISH WE HAVE 4 KINDS OF SENTENCES… Declarative (states or declares); Interrogative (ask a question); Exclamatory (strong feelings, emotions); Imperative (order, command.) LET US LOOK AT THE IMPERATIVE COMMAND.

In most IMPERATIVE COMMANDS… THERE SUBJECT IS OMITTED… The subject is often you understood… Let us look at two:

John 14:1 Let not your heart be troubled: ----

Mark 11:22 And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God.

John suggested to us that a troubled heart is a personal choice. Mark 11:22 is more than a strong suggestion… It is an order from headquarters. Jesus clearly states as a matter-of-fact that we must TRUST the leadership and timing of God’s plan. We need to accept and embrace by faith and trust that God’s love and plan is real. By trusting God we can love and embrace God’s plan. We must believe, trust and receive God’s IMPERATIVE COMMAND: HAVE FAITH IN GOD… TRUST HIS PLAN…

DO WE TRUST THE OPEN DOOR? IT MAY NOT BE WHAT WE ARE SEEKING… OPEN DOORS DO NOT ALWAYS LOOK EASY OR FAVORABLE. GOD CAN OPEN DOORS OF OPPORTUNITY… THROUGH STORMS, ILLINESS, TROUBLES AND TRIALS… GREAT MEN OF GOD HAVE SOUGHT AN OPEN DOOR TO THE OPPORTUNITY SET BEFORE THEM… WE NEED TO TRUST AND PRAY THE PRAYER FOR AN OPEN DOOR…

Acts 14:27 And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles.

TRUST? INCARCERATED? OPEN DOORS MAY LOOK ADVERSARIAL… TRUST ANYWAY…PAUL WAS IN PRISON… WHAT IS A GOOD PRISON PRAYER? LORD, OPEN THESE PRISON BARS AND LET ME OUT? THAT IS A GREAT TRUST REQUEST…

Colossians 4:3 Withal praying also for us, that God would open unto us a door of utterance, to speak the mystery of Christ, for which I am also in bonds:

Paul does not demand the prison doors to be OPEN… Paul’s actions and prayers were he saw this jail as an opportunity to boldly carry the gospel. PAUL MADE THE PERSONAL CHOICE THAT THIS SEASON IN PRISON WAS A GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO PREACH AND TEACH! THE OPEN DOOR.

Psalm 20:7 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the LORD our God.

Psalm 20:7 (MSG) See those people polishing their chariots, and those others grooming their horses? But we're making garlands for GOD our God.

I HAVE BEEN IN THE MINISTRY OVER 44 YEARS… WHEN A QUESTION KEPT POPPING IN MY MIND AND IN MY SPIRIT…

DO YOU TRUST ME? I knew how PETER must have felt when JESUS ASKED PETER: “DO YOU LOVE ME?” Well Lord, why do you keep asking me: YOU KNOW I DO? DO I TRUST YOU? JESUS YOU KNOW I TRUST YOU… 44 YEARS IN THE PASTORAL MINISTRY --- I HAVE TO TRUST YOU --- GOD, I HAVE TO TRUST YOU FOR SURVIVAL. The question just kept reoccurring in my heart: DO YOU TRUST ME? LORD YOU KNOW I TRUST YOU!