Doors and Gateways

A Ruined Gateway, Lanzarote 

by Paul Collings

Matthew 7:13-14

“Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.

Making one’s way through a narrow passage demands concentration and perseverance. It means avoiding the distractions of broader and more attractive pathways. However, narrowing down the many distractions and temptations that we encounter throughout our lives leads us to the height and the breadth and the depth of God.

The passage begs the question, “Can I be alert today to the temptation of wandering onto side roads that divert me from my ultimate destination? Can I pray for the grace to resist them?”

As we read this words of Jesus it is suggested that we bring to mind how we will spend the next day and picture how we might keep this simple statement of Jesus before them us. We know it is not just a billboard statement or an advertising motto. We perhaps need to pray that it may become my rule of life.

Jesus asks us to follow through a narrow gate and on a hard road. Even as we consider what that means to us, we allow ourselves to hear Jesus invite us to be with him on this journey.

Heavenly Father,

May we seek you and find you,

may we knock and the door be opened,

for we are sojourners looking for your Kingdom.

As we encounter suffering in this world,

turn our hearts, our ears, our eyes, our souls

toward Christ, who emptied himself,

and was tempted,

and suffered for us,

even giving his own life.

In this suffering, plant seeds of hope,

and let us never stray so far into despair,

that we forget the resurrection of Christ

and the power of his Spirit.

Amen