Turn The Doorknob

I learned from an early age that if I wanted to get something that was on the other side of a closed door, I had to reach out and grab the door knob, turn it and open the door. There were also those times when I had my hands full and I couldn't open the door by myself so someone had to HELP me open the door.

The same principle applies to our life and the way that we witness. I've prayed for many years that "God would open the doors of opportunity for me" to be able to witness to unsaved family members and friends. Even the Apostle Paul asked the church at Colossia to pray the same thing for them:

Colossians 4:2-3 Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison-- (ESV)

But, how many times in our lives have we had those doors of opportunity open for us and we never took the time to walk through them. Or we sit there and try to reason with ourselves, "Is that God telling me to do that or is it just me? Is the devil telling me to witness so I'll look stupid when I'm rejected?" For one thing, the devil is NEVER going to tell you to witness to someone! And if we have the opportunity, then it's definitely the Holy Spirit prompting us to share God's love, so we must walk through that open door!

But on the other hand, why wait for the door to open? Yes, the person on the other side of that door has to make a choice whether or not to open the door to you, but the good news is, the door has a handle on BOTH sides! In Acts 14:27, Paul and Barnabas were traveling back to Antioch after a successful missionary journey. When they returned home and got together with the other believers in the church, they shared with them about their journey and how God had used them to open doors of faith to the lost.

Thoughts to ponder:

1. God is using us today to open up doors of faith and encouragement to those in need. 
2. We are God's hands and His feet to the lost and dying world. 
3. It’s time we stop using the excuse that "the door just didn't open" or "I didn't have the opportunity". 
4. If you feel like your hands are just too full to open the door, then get someone to help you! 
5. We have opportunities every day to evangelize to the lost and we sit and stare at the door knobs, waiting for them to turn on their own, or waiting for the person on the other side of the door to open it!
6. The person on the other side of that door could be getting ready to take their last breathe, die, and go to Hell.
7. Reach out and grab that door knob, turn the handle and walk on through. God is giving us the opportunity, what are we waiting for?

Remember, not all doors (or doorknobs) are the same. Some are older and require gentle hands to open them. Some are newer and open right up with no problem. Either way, it's exciting to see what waits on the other side of the open door. 

A prayer for us today: 

"Father God, I pray today that you will fill us with your Spirit afresh and give us the boldness that we need as sons and daughters of God to turn the knob and open the door of opportunity. Let us be the light and salt that you've called us to be. Whether it's at home with our kids & spouse, at the grocery store, on our jobs, or wherever the road of life takes us, let us be bold enough to open the doors and walk on through. In Jesus' name, amen!"

As always, go with God and God will go with you!

Until next time,

Debbie Davis

One Blessed Chicky

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Are you missing Baby Jesus?

The other day I noticed that baby Jesus was missing from the nativity set in my dining room. I have several Nativity Sets throughout the house, but this particular one gets rearranged by my granddaughter on a daily basis.

I asked her if she had seen him, because she often moves him from one place to the other. One day he was with Santa Claus near the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree. Another day he was sitting near some Christmas wrapped candy. Another day he was under the Christmas tree. But he always returns to the manger.

Maddi replied, "No, I don't know what happened to baby Jesus, MawMaw."

 A couple of days went by and the manger was still empty. I was sitting at the dining 

room table going over bills and decided to look away from the checkbook for a moment. 

I looked over at the manger scene and noticed something unusual up in the loft in the 

right hand corner of the nativity. I walked over to it, bent down, and peeked in. There 

was baby Jesus nestled in the corner of the loft. 

I called for Maddi and said, "I found Baby Jesus!" 

She came running with excitement, "Where, MawMaw?"

I pointed to Baby Jesus in the loft. When she saw the baby she 

smiled and said, "Oh yeah, right where I left him.... I forgot!". 

This got me thinking. How often do we "misplace" Jesus in our lives? 

We can get so caught up in "life", that we forget about the "Giver" of life. 

Suddenly, we look up one day and see a glimpse of Jesus nestled in the 

corner of our heart. "Oh, yeah, right where I left Him... I forgot!". 

Have a merry Christmas and remember, keep Jesus out in the open, 

not hidden in "loft" of your heart.

As always, go with God, and God will go with you!

Have a merry Christmas,

Debbie Davis

One Blessed Chicky

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Yes, We Believe in God

Hello friends, here is another devotion from my archives. I wrote this one back in February of 2004. I hope you enjoy it. It's a true story of persecution.

Jessica & Tifanee 2005

Mark 13:9 “But take heed to yourselves: for they shall deliver you up to councils; and in the synagogues ye shall be beaten: and ye shall be brought before rulers and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them.”

Jim Elliot, Joan of Arc, Cassie Bernall, Rachel Scott, Stephen, James, Peter.... names that you may or may not recognize, but all have one thing in common; they were martyrs for our Lord. From the early church of the Apostles where all but one of the twelve Apostles died a martyr's death, to the modern-day story of the teen-agers at Columbine High School who were shot to death because they believed in God.

Being persecuted for the sake of Christ was not just something that happened to the early church in the book of Acts. It's as real today as it was then. Christians in Sudan and other parts of the world are being persecuted daily, for no other reason than, they won't denounce the name of Jesus.

In the spring of 2003, our local high school held its yearly Talent Contest. Tifanee and Jessica, my two daughters, along with four of their friends, decided to enter. They chose the song "Breathe", a well-known worship song made popular by Michael W. Smith. During rehearsal they had some sneers and laughter from other teens that were not Christians. Knowing they would be made fun of, they still proceeded to sing "Breathe" during the contest.

Tifanee told me later that the anointing was so strong while they were singing that it didn't matter what the other kids thought of them. After they finished singing, they went and sat in their seats among the other students. A few rows back there were a group of boys snickering and laughing at them. Suddenly one boy cursed and shouted out "Hey, what about the separation of church of state?" Then the boys began throwing half eaten suckers at my girls and their friends. One girl ended up with a sucker stuck in her hair and another girl was hit in the eye.

Persecution? Yes! They may not have been beaten like the Apostles, or burned at the stake like Joan of Arc, but the mental persecution from their peers was real to them. A few days before the contest, they had the opportunity to minister to an unsaved friend of theirs... and of all places, in the girl's restroom at school. A group of them held hands and prayed while other high school girls went in and out of the restroom. Ashamed? No! If they had it to do all over again, they would... persecution or not!

"Father, I pray that no matter what the cost, we will be Your light to a darkened world. Even if it means being made fun of, laughed at, or beaten. Give us strength to take a stand for our faith and declare aloud like the courageous teens at Columbine High, ‘Yes, we believe in God!’.”

 © Debbie L Davis 2004

Have a blessed day,

Debbie Davis

One Blessed Chicky

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