Daily Devotions

Sometimes, the Holy Spirit uses our circumstances to show us how we should utilise our discipleship. 

Throughout Paul’s life we see him interpret open and closed doors as evidence of the Spirit’s leadership. In his first letter to the Corinthians he explains he will stay in Ephesus to preach because a “wide door for effective work” has been opened, which he evidently took as the Spirit’s leadership. The whole verse reads “I shall stay here in Ephesus until the feast of Pentecost, for there is a great opportunity of doing useful work, and there are many people against me.” (1 Cor. 16:8). 

Again, no special prophetic word, no handwriting in the sky, just an open door.

However, using circumstances as a the method of spiritual guidance can be tricky, because an open door doesn’t always mean something is God’s will. Jonah happened on a ship to Tarshish, but God’s will for him was 180 degrees the opposite direction. Likewise, a closed door doesn’t always mean something is not God’s will. In Paul’s explanation to the Corinthians of why he would stay in Ephesus (mentioned above), he notes many difficulties lay ahead of him. He didn’t interpret these difficulties as evidence God wanted him to leave, but to stay.

Many years ago A.J. Gordon went to the World's Fair. From a distance he saw a man pumping water with one of those old hand pumps. The water was pouring out and he said as he looked, "That man is really pumping water." But when he got closer, he discovered that it was a wooden man connected to a pump powered by electricity. The man was not pumping the water, the water was pumping him.

Almighty God,

author of my life,

help me learn to read 

what you have written on my heart.

Give me discerning eyes

and an untiring spirit

to look within me

in order to understand 

how to reach outside of me.

And once I have begun to read you aright,

give me the generosity to help others to read you,

to sound you out one letter,

one word of radical giving at a time. Amen