“I Am the Door”
Once they had to rip open the roof
just to get close.
Soon, they came to understand
that access to the holy
was less difficult, took less effort.
Just ask, seek, knock.
Just call on Jesus’ name, come into his presence.
I wonder if we’ve made it too complex
for people in our time;
too dependent on intermediaries,
or certain rituals, the right words, the right posture,
some status of cleanliness or uncommon holiness.
And even those who do ask, seek, knock –
do they know how to receive?
what to listen for? how to wait?
The Shepherd sleeps across the entry to the sheepfold;
Guarding, protecting, observing goings forth and comings back.
He wakes and rises to lead, to shelter, to comfort, reassure.
Sometimes I miss him, don’t take notice or note.
Sometimes, I just forget to knock, seek, ask.
Yet he remains the door, the gate,
the opening for the Spirit,
the viaduct to Living Water,
the conduit to God’s grace.
Ask. Seek. Knock.
Anytime. Anywhere. Under any circumstance.
It’s free.
And free is also what you and I shall become.