The famous painting of Jesus knocking on the door is forever etched in my mind. As a young girl, I would sit in church and see this image week after week. Even then, I somehow knew that Jesus must have been a very friendly man. For someone to invite himself in to a strangers house and not be afraid of what people thought of him, he must have had a good message to share. Jesus was knocking on the door of all of our hearts to see if we would take the time to listen. Every summer during Vacation Bible School, VBS, I would memorize Bible verses about Jesus and sing happy hymns and listen to many stories about Him. My favorite Sunday School teacher was always so enthusiastic to share one more wonderful lesson that Jesus taught. I was a believer! Who could resist such a kind, loving Saviour who had given His life so radically and completely so that we could have eternal life and forgiveness of sins! Not only that, I now more fully understand that His Life has given us even more than we could imagine. I wanted to be that person who opened the door for Jesus to come in!
Years went by. Experiences, people and life, took its toll on me and I found myself at a place where I had to readjust my spiritual thermometer. My life had become one of religious tradition, kind of just going through the motions and doing all of the "churchy" things but not having much of a desire to spend time alone reading the Bible, praying or seeking God by myself. Much to my surprise, this is when Jesus knocked on the door of my heart. It was during a time in my life where I was excitedly pursuing great dreams, goals and accomplishments that I thought were good and wonderful. So, He let me go for it! For a while, it was great. But all of a sudden, yet not without a long season of compromise, I was feeling and sensing a greater hunger inside of me for something I didn't even know was there. It was God. He had finally gotten my full attention and made me realize that if I would continue pursuing my own plans without consulting Him, that my life would gradually fade into a miserable existence without His Blessing. That was the turning point in my walk with Him. I had to make some serious changes in how I mapped out my future, and now it would include Him leading and guiding me. I decided that no man, no job, no career is worth putting above my relationship with the Lord God. Finally, I had stepped into a new realm of joy, fulfillment, adventure and purpose because I had heard Him knocking on my heart's door, and I opened it! My life has never been the same since that eternal, eye-opening experience at age 23. Since then, I have been so blessed with a godly husband and four wonderful children, that we are now actively training to obey the voice of the Holy Spirit and to find the ultimate success in life, and that is namely knowing Jesus and making Him known.
Today's prayer: "Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for your life, death and resurrection. I choose to follow You and submit to Your Word and be empowered by Your Spirit. I renounce any and all things that would pull me away from Your Presence and Purpose for my life. Today is the day that You have Made and I will rejoice and be glad in it. Amen.
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