UNLOCKING ANSWERS TO LIFE’S CHALLENGES

Many times when we are looking for answers to questions about our life and purpose we seek God for His will. I have found that many times God is giving us the answer but we simply cannot see or hear it. The answer may be hidden in the following illustration. Recently, I had a conversation with an employee about a key and lock on a trailer he was picking up one evening. I had used a different lock than he was accustomed to but called and told him in advance where I had put the key. He said OK! Given his reassurance I went to bed since I had an early morning ministry obligation. Having already gone to sleep I hear my phone ringing. I abruptly awoke to answer and it was the employee who was trying to open the lock but was frustrated and trying to tell me the key wouldn’t work. I tried to walk him thru it. “Does the key you are using fit easily into the lock?” He said “yes, but it will not turn”. I asked, “Are you sure? Turn it both ways. It is very simple to turn and slide the block off to release the locking pin.” I could hear it in his voice as he struggled, “it doesn’t work!” I asked him again if he had the right key. He assured me it was. I asked, “Is it a round key….does it have a black top”. He responded, “Its round”. I continued to drill him as gently as I could but now my frustration was building. “Did you get the key out of the utility box?” Again the answer was “YES”. I remembered there was another key in the utility box but I had taken a magnetic key box and placed the new key in it and attached it to the underside of the utility box lid so he could easily find it. I asked him to look in the utility box and look inside the lid for the key box. He did and I waited for an answer. I asked again, “did you find it…..did it work?” I could here shuffling in the background but no answer right away. Then I heard these words, “I got it!”

I went back to sleep and in the pre-dawn hours that night I was awakened with these thoughts. It was as if the Lord was speaking directly to me about some of the trials I was going thru. I believe the message was compelling. You know how many times we call on the Lord and we just don’t seem to get an answer. While it seems like we have the key in our hand, it just does not open the lock to the treasure or answer that God has waiting for us. Can you see the Lord looking down at us and saying, “You have the wrong key”. It looks the same and fits in the keyhole but it just will not turn and open the lock. We tell God we are trying but nothing has changed….it just doesn’t work! God is saying, stop and listen carefully to my instructions. There are many keys that look like the answer but only one is custom made for you for this moment in time.

When life gets complicated we naturally react and as we do we get frustrated. The more noise and clutter there is to distract us from the task at hand the harder it is to find the right key. Whether it’s a real lock we are dealing with or a real “life” situation, God’s answer to you may simply “be still and listen”. It is all about finding the correct key. Once you find it, you calmly insert the key in the lock and turn it gently to hear that magical click. Try too hard and you may abandon the key you were holding because you were not patient enough or didn’t turn it the right way. We’ve all done that at one time or another. Now unlock the answer to prayer that God has already sent you. It may make the journey just a little easier.