Just Because The Door Is Open.....

I was on the phone today on the patio out back next to the pool. I looked over at two birds that flew in the open door. It was actually sad. They would be flying full force in a frantic way to try and escape. They would be flying to what seemed to be the way out, yet they would quickly realize that there was a barrier there. Of course, they didn't see the screen... so, they just kept hurting themselves. One actually hit the screen so hard that it bounced back and fell in the pool. I tried to help them but they just kept walking/flying away from me. I went inside and asked for help to get them out... but only Olivia was inside. So, I had her come outside and talked to her for a brief moment about decision making.

See, I always tell Olivia that every decision that she makes will effect another part of her life. This was a perfect opportunity for me to show her what I meant. I was able to show her that the birds flew into an open door and got stuck. The more I thought about it, the more real it became. I looked at those birds like they were idiots-- but then I realized that we are the same way! I looked at the birds and thought, "why don't they just go back out of the place that they just flew into?" But, if you would look beyond the physical circumstance, you will see that we do the exact same thing. We, as humans, walk through doors (different situations) just because they are easy to get into. Then, when we figure out that we don't want to be in that situation anymore... only then, do we figure out that we are stuck. I would bet that if the pool area looked like a trap, they wouldn't have come in. From their vantage point, it would seem like there were plenty of ways out of there. But, they didn't look closely enough. They didn't see the barriers that would hold them captive.

Personally, I have done this many times. I have walked into situations with my eyes wide open- only to find out later that I got trapped in a situation. I wanted to be able to tell the birds to retrace their flight and leave that way... but, instead, I had to take a shirt and throw it on them to weigh them down so they couldn't fly away into another screen. Then, I had to pick it up and release it back out of the door. This part of the situation with the birds reminded me of how hard it is to retrace your steps back to the path you are supposed to be on. Sometimes when one is faced with having to get away from the captivity that they find themselves in-- it is a difficult task to get back to where you are supposed to be.

I wrote all of this to warn myself and others that just because a door is open, doesn't always mean that we are supposed to walk in. If we looked a little closer before throwing ourselves into a situation, we would see that there are barriers that will prevent us from getting out. There will then be a process that we have to go through in order to get out of the situation. (And more times than not, the process will not be a fun adventure.) So, just be careful... and know that I am also telling myself to be careful. I happen to be a very impulsive person that doesn't always think things through... so, I've been stuck MANY times.

You wanna get out? I can only tell you where to start... Psalms 121.

No Worries

Ray

The Holy Bible: King James Version. 2000.

The Psalms

121

The LORD Is Thy Keeper
A Song of degrees.
1	I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills, from whence cometh my help.
2	My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth.
3	He will not suffer thy foot to be moved: he that keepeth thee will not slumber.
4	Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.
5	The LORD is thy keeper: the LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.
6	The sun shall not smite thee by day, nor the moon by night.
7	The LORD shall preserve thee from all evil: he shall preserve thy soul.
8	The LORD shall preserve thy going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.