Week 2

Matthew 7:7-8 NIV
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.”

I decided to dig in to the original language and found these verbs, ask, seek and knock were continuous action verbs. In other words, we were meant to continually…, even habitually ask, seek and knock. Not only that, but these were commands. God expects us to keep on asking, seeking and knocking. And every time we ask, seek, knock, God promises, with certainty, that there will be a response. ‘It will be given’ and ‘it shall be opened’ are God’s doing in response to our actions.

But while ‘you shall find’ has a certainty associated with it, there is an understanding that you go after it. Like when you lose your keys. You can’t keep looking for your keys, suddenly find them, but expect to drive your car unless you pick them up and use them. The kingdom of Heaven suffers violence and the violent take it by force. So while seeking Him in the past few weeks, I’ve realized that in finding Him, I’m often lead to knock on another door, so that I can seek further.

I’m finding Him in beautiful doors right now. I’m desperate to find Him and grab hold of His heart, so I’ll keep on asking, seeking and knocking until I’m changed from glory to glory.

About the artwork:
Three years ago we stayed in New Orleans for a week. The house we stayed in was next to a bar called the Crown and Anchor. I was intrigued by the front door and took a picture. The bar actually has two front entrance doors. The outside door of the Crown and Anchor is actually a Tardis (from Doctor Who if you’re a geek.) The door behind it is the real entrance into the establishment.

While I was studying Matthew 7, I remembered the picture and felt that it reminded me to keep seeking. If you know anything about the Tardis, you know that the interior is way bigger than the exterior. I think that’s just like God, you knock and get something much bigger than you could ever have expected when you started knocking, and the next door brings you closer to the finding. So keep on asking, keep on seeking, keep on knocking, because He surely will show up.

***To make the tip-in, I drew out the Tardis on scrapbook paper, shaded it with pencil and computer printed the police box sign and notice for the door. When I cut the door out I left a flap on the left side to anchor it into the Bible page with double stick tape, leaving the right side free to tip out when I want to read the whole passage. I cut open the door to reveal the interior red door to the Crown and Anchor. The red door was made with Prismacolor pencils.

Prismacolor Premier Soft Core Colored Pencil, Set of 48 Assorted Colors (3598T)