Good Morning and welcome to a brand new chapter; a chapter of faith, a chapter of hope, and a chapter that I am allowing God to write. I am so very, very excited about what God has in store for me.
I had a need/desire for a new car. My need was for a basic entry level car. I was not looking for anything more than a very basic car. Comfort, looks, or anything other than “well-running” really wasn’t on my list of criteria. I only needed a small car that would last me 8-10 years. My need wasn’t great nor was my expectations. After what seemed like a torturous delay, God finally provided the means for me to purchase a car so the search was on, even as the words out of my mouth were, “God will bring me the right car to me.” In my search there were continued roadblocks. Everything cost more than I was willing to pay or had something wrong with it. My frustration and disappointment grew and grew because I felt like God was withholding from me the very thing that I needed and that he had promised. Door after door closed in my face and my faith eroded even as my confusion grew. Finally I just stopped because I didn’t know what else to do. As I stood there with tears running down my cheeks looking at all of the doors of opportunity that were tightly closed, my brother spoke words that caused me to get my eyes off of the closed doors and turn my eyes towards the one that God had opened for me. It was then that I saw how God not only fulfilled my need but gave me so much more. He provided a car that exceeded all my expectations while continuing to keep it in a range that I could afford to maintain. He provided a car that gives me comfort, security and looks. The more I drive this car the more thankful I am that God closed the doors to the lesser blessings that would have merely fulfilled my needs but never exceeded them.
As we walk through this life we have needs, desires, frustrations and joys. We pray regularly that God would direct our path and show us His will for our lives. We are so sincere and we really believe that we mean it when we pray those words. But then a need arises and we seek him to fulfill that need. In the midst of praying about our needs, desires, dreams, we get an idea of how he is going to fulfill our need. We get preconceived ideas about the way in which he will bring us fulfillment; all the while still believing we are seeking his path. As we are asking him to take care of us, we see a door up ahead and within that door is the very thing that will fulfill our need or our dream. We are so excited and thank God for the answer to our prayer but then, just as we are about to reach that fulfillment, the door closes. We stand there in front of the door weeping, frustrated and perhaps a bit angry that God would withhold the answer to our prayer. As far we could see that very thing that He allowed to be cut off from us is the perfect solution, the perfect answer. We stand in front of that closed door with our faith in a tatters and us crying out to God, “why?!?” Why would God cut off the very thing we need? We are confused, frustrated and we continue to stand in front of that closed door lamenting what we believe could of and should have been. What we don’t do is continue to walk the path that God has put us on and trust Him. If we could just bring ourselves to turn away from that closed door and lift our heads, we would see another door just ahead. We would see something within that door that will not only fulfill our need but exceed it. So when a door closes, don't lament and allow your frustration to grow, but rejoice that God is going to give you something even better than what you had first believed and keep walking.
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