When one door closes

On March 23, 2009, I broke my left ankle in two places. I attempted to jump down from a six-foot fence I had climbed and, worried about how the landing might affect my knees, I forgot about the other parts of my legs. SNAP! Four days later, I had surgery to repair the breaks and spent the next 8 weeks getting around on a scooter. 

This unfortunate setback was actually the third in a trio of setbacks, all occurring within the space of about 5 weeks.

In mid-February my 13-year-old daughter was diagnosed with an inoperable mass in her brain. The doctors called it a tumor but, since it is in an area of the brain that is too risky to reach for a biopsy, we could not confirm exactly what it was.

Then, about two weeks later, I was informed by the head of the independent school where I had been a teacher, coach, and administrator for 12 years that I would not be getting a contract for the following school year. That is to say, I was fired. The reason, I was told, was that there was no longer a place for me at the school. Ouch!

In the midst of this storm it didn't occur to me even once that God was closing, no, God was actually slamming shut a door in my life. It was only later I could see that for several years prior He had been trying to get my attention that the door was closing but I chose to disregard the signs and plowed ahead anyway.

I wonder, have you ever done something like that? If so, how did it turn out for you?

For many years I have preached to my children (I have four) that in life it’s always good to have choices. Having choices gives you the freedom to go in whatever direction you want to go in life.

Unfortunately, I never stressed to them that all choices and decisions, especially the ones that could have life changing consequences, should first be lifted up to God in prayer to ensure they are in line with His will. Frankly, I'd rarely done it myself so it never crossed my mind to pass that on to my kids.

The events of 2009 got me thinking and reflecting about many of the choices I had made in my life. Too often, it turns out, I've gone it alone on some of the big choices and expected that the good Lord would simply bless what I had chosen. Just as often I learned: that approach doesn't work!

I’m sure you’ve heard the familiar refrain, "when God closes one door there's another one open somewhere else". I found that to be true and when the door slammed on me in 2009 there was another door open. I just needed to get out of the way and let the Lord take charge!

Here’s the takeaway:

It makes no difference where you are in your life. At some point you will be faced with an important choice or decision which could have life changing consequences. Maybe it’s already happened and I can assure you it’s likely going to happen many times in your life. 

If you will just bring God into the decision-making process and let Him lead you, you'll be amazed at the good things that happen in your life!