There are countless open doors-opportunities that God has provided-which you and I can walk through on a daily basis. God is constantly inviting us to trust Him and experience ever-expanding dimensions of His faithfulness and blessing. But far too often, we hang back hesitantly, not sure of what we should do.

Often, Christians fail to walk through God's open doors because of a faulty view of God Himself. God is to be trusted, and the better we get to know Him the easier it will be to recognize those doors He is holding open for us.

From years of watching Christians miss opportunities God has set before them, I have made four observations about why we don't walk through God's open doors:

First, opportunities are often disguised as problems. Two decades ago, our church was holding services in three different locations. We knew we needed larger facilities at our main location but were stymied in our building program. Each time we began to discuss building plans, the three locations were at odds with one another. So we continued with that "problem" for several years.

Eventually, the problem became an opportunity. While we were stuck in our "no building" mode, the Lord showed us another way to reach more people-even more than if we had huge new facilities at all three locations. We began Turning Point Ministries which now sends the Gospel out over radio, television, and in print. I know now that the media ministry was an opportunity disguised as a building program problem.

Don't miss an opportunity because it's dressed up in the misleading mask of a problem.

Second, opportunities are often time-sensitive. When Walt Disney was planning Disneyland, he offered a friend the opportunity to buy up the scrub land surrounding the site which he knew would dramatically increase in value. The friend said he'd think about it. Because Disney needed an answer quickly, his friend lost the opportunity and tremendous wealth besides. If you fail to grasp an opportunity God puts before you, it doesn't necessarily mean God is finished with you. But it probably means He will turn to someone else who will grasp the opportunity.

Don't let hesitation become procrastination and lead to devastation.

Third, opportunities are often tested by opposition. Some people have gotten halfway through an open door and turned around because they faced opposition. They thought, "We must not have heard God correctly. This opposition can't be from God." If Paul anticipated opposition when going through God's open doors, we should, too (I Corinthians 16:8-9). Opposition can be a sign that you heard God correctly, since Satan will be doing all he can to discourage you and cause you to turn around.

Don't miss a blessing-filled Christian life by trying to avoid a problem-free Christian life.

Finally, opportunities are usually missed because of fear. I can't think of an opportunity from God that I ever grasped without trembling hands. But I have often reached out and taken God's steady hand and walked through His open door-and so can you.

All opportunities and open doors have one thing in common: They focus on the future. And when looking toward the future, we have two choices-to walk by faith or to walk in fear. God has not given us a spirit of fear (II Timothy 1:7), but He has promised to go with us wherever we go in His will (Hebrews 13:5). God loves to get us to the place where our strength is little so we can see His might power.

Is there an opportunity in front of you at this very moment which makes you nervous, scared, weak, and faithless? Wonderful! You are right where you need to be to see God hold the door open for you while you walk through.

Wherever there is a fearful response on our part there is a faithful reassurance on God's.

Friend, you don't have to worry about how or when or where the next door in your life will be opened. The doors God opens for you only have doorknobs on one side...His! So you can be sure the true, holy, and powerful One will open the right door at the right time-the knob is in His hands.

This article was excerpted from Turning Points, Dr. David Jeremiah's Devotional Magazine. Call Turning Point at 1-800-947-1993 for your complimentary copy of Turning Points.

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