Imagine this: In front of you there are two doors:
Door #1 leads to God’s will for your life
Door #2 leads to the life you have envisioned for yourself… all your hopes, dreams, every wish already fulfilled.
Which door would you choose?
No, this is not “Let’s Make A Deal”, there is no “Monte Hall”, and there is no Door #3. So, which door will it be? Most Christians will say they want God’s will for their life, but most of us still want our own wills too. Perhaps it would be simpler to say: “Please select one or the other for your life: “The God Door or The Self Door”…which is it for you?
We like to follow God up to a certain point, then, when tough gives way to treacherous or trials go on too long we have a tendency to bail and retreat back to the low road, scurrying on down to Door #2 with our tail between our legs; but still professing loudly to love God.
Andrew Murray defined heaven as “the place where God’s perfect will is always done.” That’s why Satan needed to get out; and thus, took up residence here in this wishy-washy fallen place, tormenting God’s beloved and encouraging humans to go their own way. “Choose Door #2,” he whispers; “You deserve it, you’ve worked so hard already! Door #1 is narrow, boring, straight, and old-fashioned; you’re much too creative for that. Look there’s a big wide world over there with your name in lights (and free apples.)”
Could we have heaven on earth? What does The Lord’s Prayer say?
“Thy Kingdom come
Thy Will be done
On Earth, as it is in Heaven…” (Matt 6:9 – 11)
Maybe if more of us were picking Door #1 and truly casting aside our fears, fantasies, and inflated egos and allowing Jesus complete access to our hearts we would see more of heaven right here. But, O how we love to be first and not last, that’s for losers. We admire self-made-men and strong-willed-women; we revel in our own self-righteousness and fail to seek God’s righteousness; we think we know what’s best for us, but we don’t have a clue. Only the God who created us knows best, our Father, who is in heaven, knows best, and holy, holy, holy is his name. Can we ever come to that place and truly rest there, while we are still here?
Psalm 37:4-7 says, (*note the covenant name ‘LORD’ is used here)
“Delight yourself in the LORD
and He will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the LORD, Trust in Him and He will do this:
He will make your righteousness shine like the dawn, (Him in you, the hope of glory)
The justice of your cause like the noonday sun. (What if your cause was His cause?)
Be still before the LORD, and wait patiently for Him. (Wait for His cause, His purpose for you, His will aligning yours)”
There is an order in the above verses. First, when our delight is in the LORD, when he is our heart’s desire, first and foremost. It is only then that His will begins to become our will as well. When Door #1, God’s will for your life, is accepted and lived out then suddenly you see how Door #1 and Door #2 hold the same path and the same desires. Surrender takes place and then there can be a perfect lining up of wills, because now we only want what He wants for us. Our Heavenly Father is the giver of all good things, and we can trust and believe him. His promises are true, He has never proven himself to be anything but faithful. This is the anchor for our souls.
-M
