Have you ever gotten so tired that brain fuzz takes over your mind and the only thing you can do is rest? On the day that I finalized my teaching notes on this lesson on Acts 10, brain fuzz overtook my mind. I knew that if I did not take a nap my thoughts would be incoherent. My former Pastor John Bisagno used to tell us that sometimes the most holy thing we can do is take a nap. I have been ever so grateful for such a sweet truth. As I rested my head, I prayed, “God, please give me the amount of rest I need so I can get up and finish the lesson.”

In the stillness of my waking moments, I tend to hear the LORD more clearly. Suddenly, I jumped up out of my sleep with a completely different approach to chapter 10 then I had when I lay down. I originally intended to focus the lesson on the truth that God does not play favorites, but it seemed as if in an instant I caught and I saw a new outline as clearly as if I had spent hours writing and studying. I do so love it when this happens. I saw a picture of John, the writer of Revelation, standing outside the door of heaven. A voice called out, “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). I realized this passage is about the value of an open door. God open our eyes to let us see the open door, but it is our choice to walk through the door.

When an open door happens…
We can walk through to seek salvation.
We can walk through to hear the truth.
We can walk through to give the truth.
We can walk through to receive the truth.

Ultimately, we must understand that the LORD opens spiritual doors; it is our choice to walk through. As we see the door open, a multitude of temptations will cause us to walk away without entering, but there will also be barriers that we must recognize and honor in order to walk through, too. As I travel on mission trips both locally and internationally, I have learned to ask what the cultural custom is for entering a home. I did not realize how each culture has developed a unique custom for open doors. I learned in Russia that it was considered rude if I walked through a door before an extended hand granted me entrance. While in Brazil, I discovered that in the area we visited, the homes were surrounded by concrete walls with an iron gate. It did not matter if we were in the wealthy area or the poorer section every home had a concrete wall. The poorer sections were built from the broken cinder blocks thrown away by the rich. When we approached a home there was no door to even knock on. The very first house we walked up to I was a little surprised when the interpreters clapped their hands. The clap echoed off the concrete walls to let the family know they had a guest at the gate. In Guatemala, the middle class families drive their car through their front door, so there are actually two doors in front of the house. A larger door opens up for the car with a smaller door for a person to walk through. If a person comes to visit, the owner will open a small door to see who is outside or look through a peep hole. In the villages, there were no doors, so we called out greetings before getting close to the home. Knowing and understanding the cultural customs for entrance made our walking through so much easier. Sometimes cultural customs can become a barrier. The key is to know the cultural customs in order to honor them, but to not allow them to become a barrier, but a bridge.

This week will discover that two doors open on about 33 miles apart. Regardless of the cultural customs of Peter and Cornelius, the LORD used open doors in their lives to meet their spiritual needs. For one Cornelius, it was unto salvation and for Peter to let go of a prejudice that would hinder his ministry. Both walked through when the door opened. Reflect upon how God uses one man’s need for salvation to slay another man’s prejudices. Please notice that both doors open through prayer and the one who answers is the Angel of the LORD.

Taken from Tell It Well, The Ripple Effect Continues, Week 10 Day 1, page 123-124.