When You Feel Stuck

“I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” – John 10:9 ESV

Sometimes you’ve got to put your hip into it.

 

My family and I just bought our own version of This Old House. A 1960 refurbished ranch nestled in a peaceful neighborhood, filled with good friends and an eclectic mix of homes.

 

And like most older things, I find this house has a well-earned spirit of stubbornness. As if to say, “Look, I’m fat with years, I’ve survived more than you know, and if I want to break down, fall apart, or even outright refuse to work – then I’ve earned the right.”

 

And nothing embodies this curmudgeon-esque attitude more than our front door.

 

The old, wooden door sticks pretty good at the bottom. My husband, daughter, and I have all bounced off it forgetting you have to bully it some before it’ll let you pass through. But when my son first came to the door, pushed on it and declared it locked, I knew I had a message to share with you.

 

Aaron: “Mom, the door is locked.”

 

Me: “Son, everything about the door tells you it’s unlocked.” (enter blank stare.)

 

Me: “Think about it, the handle moves freely and the top of the door opens some.”

 

Aaron: “But I can’t get through.”

 

Me: “Sometimes you’ve got to put your hip into it.”

 

Aaron: “Oh.” He says as he bumps it with his hip and heads inside.

 

Our conversation got me thinking. How many times have you declared a door locked because you met resistance? Or maybe you’ve thrown your hands up in defeat even though everything tells you the way is open? The moment things get sticky, doubt creeps in and we question whether we’re even at the right door at all.

 

I find this especially true in our walk with Jesus. Many of us experience a wide-eyed vision of grace somewhere along our journey. God opens a door – or two, and we stroll through with ease and certainty. But then you come to a place were joy and hope are harder to see, and suddenly it seems right, or at least easy, to give up.

 

God says, “I am the door. If anyone enters by me…”. This is how we enter – by faith.  As childen of God, we enter into life and the “home” of His will by faith. So even though resistance arrives and we feel stuck, we’ll still see that the door is indeed open, and we’ll trust God to bring us through where we cannot.

 

Sometimes you’ve just got to put your faith into it.

 

Pass through the hard fought door my friend and let Jesus tend to you. For when you step back outside into this big, cruel world, you’ll have been clothed and covered with the perseverance, character, and hope (Romans 5:4) of God to withstand all your comings and goings.