What's in Your Closet?

(picture from oliphantlock .com)

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if any man hear My voice, and opens the door, I will come in to him….” – Revelation 3:20 KJV 

John Pantry is a singer we met in England who recorded some phenomenally incredible music. One song used this scripture as it’s premise and the chorus cheerfully beckons, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock and if any man hears my voice, I will enter in and take away his sin and together we will rejoice.” To hear the song, click here: Behold I Stand at the Door and Knock 

Pondering this verse led me to the thought that every verse we read in scripture means more to us each time we read it. God reveals new truth to us every time we read His Word, as we’re ready for it. “Behold”, He says, “I stand at the door and knock….” What door is He knocking on? The common answer is the door to your heart, because that’s where He longs to reside. 

But after letting Him into your heart, what if there are more doors for Him to knock on? What about all those closet doors you like to keep closed? Some of us will protest that there is no unopened door in their heart. Well, good for them. But some of us are an ongoing work in progress. 

We’re Christians, but we need healing in many areas of our lives. Our healing has already been provided, Jesus already took care of that. But sometimes we yield our wounds over to Him one by one, and little by little. 

You may just have a few closet doors in your heart, and they may not even be locked shut. Or – you may have many closet doors in there and you think you’ve got them all locked up tightly, secured against infiltration. No one needs to know what’s in them. In fact, you may have forgotten what you locked away in some of them. It's the silliest notion to think we can hide things from God. He knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows what we have hidden away in dark corners, and He knows what we’ll be doing at precisely 4:03pm next Thursday. He knows everything we know, and everything we don’t know. He knew where Adam and Eve were trying to hide even as He called out to them. He knew what they’d done – and yes, He still loved them. 

(picture from reddit)

No matter what’s buried in our closets, it’s okay, God isn’t mad at you. He loves you more than you can imagine, despite what you think. But He won’t go nosing around in our closets until we open the doors for Him. 

Once you work up whatever courage you think it takes to face what’s behind those doors, He’s ready and willing to go in with you and get them cleaned up and organized and ready to show off to anyone who passes by. 

He’s ready to give you that certificate of forgiveness or healing or deliverance or whatever the closet calls for. 

Television commercials ask, What’s in YOUR wallet? 

 Let me ask, rhetorically, What’s in YOUR closet? 

He’s knocking…….

What's In Your Closet?

(picture from pinterest.com)

Last week our pastor made mention of a book that intrigued me. I haven’t gotten it yet, but, I took note of it. From a Women’s Aglow Bible study, it’s called Shame; the Thief of Intimacy.

Sometimes shame, like other negative feelings, can bring us down. We can wear it like a cozy bathrobe, not even aware of how it’s dragging us into darkness, until it’s too late. It’s a subtle thing, we reach for it there on the hook in our bathroom, right where we left it that last time we shook it off.

(photo from houzz.com)

 But, shame isn’t the only thief in our wardrobe.

Throughout our average day, we may well put on something that looks more like depression, sadness, sorrow, anxiety, worry or fear.

Throughout scripture, we read about clothing ourselves; in the righteousness of God (Isaiah 61:10; Ephesians 4:22-24), in the armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-18), with praise and rejoicing (Isaiah 61:1-2)….

I delight greatly in the Lord;
    my soul rejoices in my God.
For he has clothed me with garments of salvation
    and arrayed me in a robe of his righteousness,
as a bridegroom adorns his head like a priest,
    and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels. – Isaiah 61:10 (NIV)

When I show up at the elementary school to pick up my granddaughter, if I notice I’ve spilt coffee on my shirt, it’s too late to do anything about it. If I’d noticed it before I left the house, I could have changed into something clean, and avoided any embarrassment.

So, maybe one of our first steps into the day should include looking at ourselves in our spiritual mirror (the Word of God) to see if we line up with what He has to say about us. (James 1:22-25)

Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom,and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do. – James 1:22-25 (NIV)

(photo from etsy.com)

Pastor also mentioned something about pride being the root of a poor self-image. Say what? Didn’t make sense to me at first, but he went on to explain that pride says that what my opinion is of me, is more correct than what God thinks of me. Ouch!

So, if I feel worthless or shameful or defeated, that’s truer than what my Creator, the God of the Universe has to say about me???

Yeah, I guess that would be pride.

God knew we’d have hard days; days when we feel as if the world is moving on without us, days when we feel worthless, days when sorrow overwhelms us, and days when the bad news just won’t stop coming. As a matter of fact, we can quote His Word, saying, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.– John 16:33

His Word also tells us to put on the garment of praise in exchange for the spirit of heaviness. Here it is, tucked into some of my favorite verses.

The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me,
    because the Lord has anointed me
    to proclaim good news to the poor.
He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted,
    to proclaim freedom for the captives
    and release from darkness for the prisoners,
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor
    and the day of vengeance of our God,
to comfort all who mourn,
   and provide for those who grieve in Zion—
to bestow on them a crown of beauty
    instead of ashes,
the oil of joy
    instead of mourning,
and a garment of praise
    instead of a spirit of despair.
They will be called oaks of righteousness,
    a planting of the Lord
    for the display of his splendor. – Isaiah 61:1-3 (NIV)

So no matter how we’re feeling today, look need into the mirror of the Word of God, throw our shoulders back and admit it; what He says about us is true.

Yes, we will overcome – even this.

Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world. – 1 John 4:4 (KJV)

For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. – 1 John 5:4 (KJV)

Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? – 1 John 5:5 (KJV)

What’s in your closet?

(photo from myclothinghelper.com)

Closets in Paradise?

(whatanart.com)

One day, while my children were still preteens, in the midst of a hectic day, I fled to the bathroom for some alone time. While sitting there, I cried; I prayed. I realized my helplessness and gave it all to my Father. Yes, He’s even with me in the bathroom.

I use visuals to help me process, so as I prayed, I saw myself frantically running around in a maze. I lifted the 3-D maze, as if a drawing in a coloring book, and placed it in a box of some sort. I gave the box to God, imagining placing it in His giant hand.

(news4security.com)

“So you won’t live there anymore,” I heard in reply.

Stillness. Quiet. Relief!

I need visuals. But, that’s me. They help me grow.

What if the kingdom of heaven is right under your nose?

How many times have we been carried away by a movie or novel that paints the splendor of a magical kingdom, whether in a far off sphere or within the minute world of fairies and such?

As children, we may have marveled at the thought or hope of such an existence. Who knows, perhaps even as adults we marvel at such thoughts. (I do.)

What if there is a kingdom with such promise that our human minds can barely conceive what it might be like? Yes, it might compute to us as a magical kingdom; a place where love reigns and doesn’t even need to triumph, because that’s all there is in this kingdom of Love.

(hqwallbase.com)

This human lifespan, a blip on the radar of eternity might seem quite without purpose. What could we possibly achieve in this lifetime that will impact forever? Or – are we even supposed to be striving to accomplish such achievements?

And what if this kingdom or paradise is right under our noses?

(morish.com)

How many inches is it from your nose to your heart?

It amazes me that our minds can think we believe certain ideas, yet sometimes our hearts can override those thoughts. How can our heart and our mind act so independently of each other?

Sometimes we wish something to be true so fiercely that we cannot imagine life in any other paradigm. Wrapping our heads around a reality so opposed to the one we imagined would unfold as we journeyed through life can be as simple or as complex as we make it.

If given the news we or a loved one has a terminal illness, we may choose to live in denial for as long as evidence permits. Or, we may choose to tackle it head on and seek out what we can do to minimize suffering or hope to find a different prognosis.

I’m discovering the answers to so many of my questions are simmering in my own heart, waiting for me to see them there, begging to be uncovered, as if God’s hidden them there for me.

I’m finding that built into us is the basis for healing, for comfort and for peace and love beyond what we thought was capable. All of this and more, because built into our hearts is a throne we can give to the One Who created everyone and everything; and He has all the answers and all the healing and all the love we need.

Personally, I think we’re sometimes afraid to look into our own hearts. I know that at various seasons in my life I’ve been fearful of what I might find there.

(rentittoday.com)

Good, bad or indifferent, if it’s in there, it’s a part of me. Avoiding it won’t make it disappear. Embracing it and exploring it allows us to see beyond thoughts that have held us captive in the concept of who we’ve thought we were supposed to be or what an ideal version of us could look like.

We are who we are. And we were created to be the ‘us’ we are – on purpose and as part of a plan far greater than we can fathom.

Exercise for the day – or week – or as long as it takes: Look into your own heart and allow yourself to see what’s there. God already knows the contents; you don’t have to be afraid. He’s the ultimate Protector, He knows what you’re ready for, He’s been preparing you. He’ll go there with you. For those of you who are “Friends” fans – this is Monica’s secret closet.

(friends.wikia.com)

What we uncover may not all be pretty. Some may use the word courage to describe what it will take to venture into the darkness. It’s only dark because we’ve not let light shine there yet. Some might use the word surrender. But, eventually we’ll discover paradise.

God’s Word gives us great assurance over and over again. Here’s a taste of His goodness:

“For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. Beloved, if our heart condemn us not, then have we confidence toward God.” – 1 John 3:20-21 (KJV)

With the visual of placing you into God’s loving hands, I bless you…. “and the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” – Philippians 4:7 (KJV)

“Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” – John 14:27 (KJV)  

(peacepoint.com)