Doors of Opportunity - part 1

For the next four weeks we are going to be talking about "Doors of Opportunity."  We all know what an opportunity is, but have we realized that many opportunities that come our way are actually God-given?  I invite you to take this journey with me now and let's see what "open doors" might present themselves before us!

First of all, what is an opportunity?  Most simply it could be described as man’s set of circumstances that make things possible. Synonyms for the word opportunity include words such as chance, moment, or occasion.

Opportunities are times or moments offered to us where we can:

• Make the world a better place.
• Improve our skills and abilities.
• Do good for others.
• Share the gospel message. 

Acts 10:28 tells us that Jesus went about doing good. He had opportunities and He took advantage of them.

What types of opportunities does the Bible describe? We find in 1 Corinthians that Paul talks about “a wide door” of opportunity. Some translations say a “great door of opportunity.”

1 Corinthians 16: 8-9 (AMP)  ⁸ But I will stay in Ephesus until Pentecost, ⁹ because a wide door for effective service has opened to me [in Ephesus, a very promising opportunity], and there are many adversaries.

Paul stayed ministering right where he was at the time because:

• The wide door of opportunity was evident.
• The obstacles he was facing didn’t stop him. In fact they encouraged him because it meant his efforts were being effective.
• People were open and receptive to the Truth as it was being presented.

How did this “wide door of opportunity” that Paul walked through affect him personally?

• He matured in Christ.
• He became more deeply rooted in Christ.
• He became motivated by love. (1 Corinthians 16: 4)
• He effectively was used to change the lives of the Ephesians.

Before we move on, what does the word “effective” mean? The Scripture says that the wide door of opportunity made way for “effective” service.

In the Greek, the word “effective” is “energes” and it means something that is forceful, active, or powerful. Paul stayed in Ephesus because he was being effective in ministry.

Some opportunities come our way because we “ask…seek…knock.”  Matthew 7: 7 (AMP) says, ^“Ask and keep on asking and it will be given to you; seek and keep on seeking and you will find; knock and keep on knocking and the door will be opened to you.”

As an example, I knew a young man in Uganda who was always asking me to bring him to America every time I ministered in his country. Whenever I saw him on a mission outreach he would ask me to secure a way for him to come live in the USA. Finally my son-in-law, his Ugandan pastor, suggested that he try winning the visa lottery that is offered annually in that nation. He entered and guess what? The first time he put in his name he was selected and won a green card for entrance to America! That young man kept asking, seeking and knocking and eventually the door opened!

Before we continue next week with this theme of “doors of opportunity,” please take some time this week to think about the doors of opportunity that you are pursuing. Are you asking, seeking, and knocking on any doors that you desire to be opened to you? Hopefully you have been encouraged today to continue your quest!

Blessings to all of you,

Dr. Sharon Predovich