Today’s Lectio Divina: Excerpts from Psalm 55. (MsgB)
Open Your ears, God, to my prayer; don’t pretend You don’t hear me knocking.
Come close and whisper Your answer. I really need You.
I call to God; God will help me.
At dusk, dawn, and noon I sigh; deep sighs—He hears, He rescues.
And I trust in You.
Knock. Knock.
Who’s there?
Orange.
Orange who?
Orange You, Jesus, going to answer the door?
It seems from what the Bible says; this whole seeking God thing can be boiled down to one or two simple scenarios.
Scenario #1:
I’m found standing outside the House of God. I’m definitely out in the cold, left to face my troubles on my own. But the good news is that my Loving Father is on the other side of that door, ready and able to help me in my time of need.
So, like King David here in Psalm 55, the Scriptures tell me that I need to go up to God’s front door and begin knocking, requesting the Holy Trinity to come and help.
Over in the New Testament, Jesus seems to pick up on this theme as well when He coaches His friends with this knock-knock ditty:
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” (Matthew 7: 7-8)
Now, let’s look at scenario #2.
The picture is now reversed. Here I am sitting on my coach, watching TV, eating popcorn, and, quite honestly, spending very little time concerning myself with the things of God. Suddenly, there is a knock or two at my door. Yikes. It’s Jesus. Knocking. His hope is that I’ll be attentive enough to His persistent knocking that I’ll get up off my duff, go open my door and let Him in.
“Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with Me.” (Revelation 3: 20)
As I see it, both scenarios have great promise for me when it comes to knocking on doors.
Like it or not, you see, this world we live in is separated from God. He lives up in heaven. I live down here on earth. The wall that divides us, while at times seeming impenetrable, is simply a door. Nothing more. Nothing less. And my job down here is to never find myself standing too far away from that door to heaven.
That way, when I find myself in times of trouble, I simply have to go over to heaven’s door and start knocking.
Knock. Knock.
Who’s there?
Marty.
Marty, who?
Marty, Your beloved son, who really needs a hand to make it down here, Poppa. Can You come out and play?
And, on other occasions, there will be times in my life (when I least expect it) when Jesus is heard knocking on that same door.
Knock. Knock.
Who’s there?
Jesus.
Jesus, who?
Jesus, the Christ, who has a special delivery for you from heaven. May I come in and give you the goods?
You betcha, Lord. Come on in. I’ve been expecting You!
My prayer: Father, while I don’t like the fact that there is a big door separating me from You, I accept it as part of this life down here on planet earth. So, Poppa, help me pay much more attention to the knocking sounds. May I be found knocking on Your door on a daily basis, and may I always be found answering the door when You knock. For Your name’s sake. Amen.
My questions to ponder: So when was the last time I played ‘knock knock’ with Jesus? Am I so independent in this life, so busy with the details that I fail to hear His knock? Or what about the times I find myself overwhelmed with life? Am I too stubborn or too proud to get up and go knock on God’s door, requesting His day-to-day help in my life?
So what is God speaking to you today as you ponder the Psalms?
Over a 50-week period, you and I will take a deeper look at The Psalms: God’s Songbook of Prayers. In order to keep all the blog sessions organized, we suggest you bookmark our Contemplating the Psalms home page for ease of use. Keep in mind that one of the best ways to explore the on-going applications of this blog series is to walk alongside a biblically-based, Christ-centered spiritual director who is familiar with how to make material like this part of your overall spiritual formation in God. Many of our directors in our Sustainable Faith-Heartland network are available to companion you in your journey with Jesus. Click here for more info.
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