“Here I am! I stand
at the door and knock. If anyone hears
my voice and opens
the door, I will come in and
eat with him, and he
with me.”
Revelation 3:20 (NIV)
Little five year
old boys don’t usually want to play with girls putting on makeup – unless it is
boring because there are no other boys around. That changes everything. At
least it did for Jude, my grandson.
My four granddaughters
had locked themselves in the bathroom and were trying on all my makeup and
giggling as they put lipstick and eye shadow on each other. On any other day
Jude would not have cared because he and big brother Noah would have been
playing games on their iPods.
But Noah was at
a friend’s house and Jude was alone . . . and outnumbered. So he decided to see
if the girls would let him play.
I heard him
knocking – softly at first and then harder and harder – but no one would open
the door. After a few minutes I heard his precious little voice pleading: “Hey girlies,
let me in. I want to play, too. You can even put makeup on me. ” But the door remained shut.
I looked up to
see Jude coming toward me with a pencil and paper. “I need you to write a note
for me, Grandma, so I can put it under the door.” He cupped his hands around my
ear, whispering his message. My heart nearly broke in two as I wrote the
following words on his paper. “It’s Jude. Please let me come in.”
Revelation 3:20
also speaks of one standing at a door knocking and calling to those inside to
open it. That person is Jesus. How incredible is that! Christ himself is
standing outside His own church, asking permission to come in.
It is hard for
me to comprehend the patience that Jesus has as He waits for us to open the
door of our hearts and allow Him to enter. Ever gracious and loving, He would
never barge in and demand to be a part of our lives. So why don’t we answer?
Perhaps we are
too busy “putting on makeup” that the world has to offer and ignoring the knock
and the voice of the One who longs to replace our temporary with His permanent.
If you are the
one inside the locked door, my prayer today is that you would listen for the
knock at the door of your heart and the voice of the Savior as He calls “Please
let me come in.”
Father,
forgive me for being so tuned in to the world that I do not listen to your
voice or your gentle knocking on my heart to come in to my life. In Jesus’
Name. Amen.
R.A.P. it up . . .
Reflect
- Do you
often find that you get so involved with the “noise” of everyday life that
you do not hear the Lord speaking to your heart?
- What
are some of the “noises” of life that compete with the voice of the Lord
for your attention?
Application
- Plan
ten minutes somewhere in your day for you to sit quietly and listen for
the Lord’s voice speaking to your heart.
- Journal
whatever comes to mind. Look up one Scripture that addresses His
encouragement to you.
Power Verses
- Revelation
3:20 (NIV) “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my
voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with
me.”
- Hebrews
3:8 (NIV) “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts…”
- Isaiah
55:3 (NIV) “Give ear and come to me; hear me, that your soul may live…”
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