The word that came to Jeremiah from the Lord in the days of Jehoiakim, the son of Josiah, king of Judah: “Go to the house of the Rechabites and speak with them and bring them to the house of the Lord . . .”- Jeremiah 35:1-2
In today’s blog John Ortberg discusses the fourth (of ten) common myths about doors in Chapter 4 of All the Places to Go.
4. Open doors are about glamorous spiritual success for spiritual giants. Open doors are not to be confused with spiritualized stories where we get what makes us the happiest. On the contrary, Pastor Ortberg states:
” . . . open doors are mostly small, quiet invitations to do something humble for God and with God in a surprising moment.”
The author references the Rechabites, an obscure clan asked to play a special role by God- not to drink, plant vines, sow seeds, build houses, or settle down. Centuries later, when Israel was on the brink of exile, Jeremiah invited the Rechabites to come to the house of the Lord. God wanted the people of Israel to learn a lesson from these humble nomads- that God prizes faithfulness to humble tasks.
As John concludes, the attitude with which we do a task is important to God:
“Often an open door is as simple as a second thought: Do the right thing, no matter how small. Do what any decent human being would do in this situation. Honor a commitment when it would be easier to let it slide. . . . If the door is not marked ‘glamorous’ just settle for ‘obedient.’ ”
Today’s question: What recent small, quiet invitations from the Lord have you received? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: the new Short Meditation, “Braced for the future”
