An Opportunity or a Test? Part 2

Call To Prayer

Topic: An Opportunity or a Test? Part 2

By: Daniel Peter

Date: 28.01.2025

Now when I went to Troas to preach the gospel of Christ and found that the Lord had opened a door for me, I still had no peace of mind, because I did not find my brother Titus there. So I said goodbye to them and went on to Macedonia.
2 Corinthians 2:12-13 (NIV)

In yesterday’s Call to Prayer, we saw how not every opportunity that comes our way should be utilized. In all the instances mentioned, sin was the reason those opportunities or open doors were not right for them to access. However, there are some open doors that you don’t have to sin to access, yet it’s still not God’s will for you to walk through them.

Apostle Paul found himself in a position where he had to reject an open door—an opportunity to preach the Gospel—not because he had to sin to access it, but because he had no peace. In today’s scriptural verse, we see how the Bible mentions that it was the Lord who opened the door, and the purpose of opening the door was for the preaching of the Gospel, which is good. Yet, Paul left the open door. Like Apostle Paul, God expects us to reject some opportunities He brings our way.

The above may sound contradictory, but God allows such situations to train our sensitivity to His voice and to test our loyalty to Him. To buttress this point, I will share a personal story. Some years ago, God led me to a lady for a relationship that should have led to marriage. God spoke to both of us in a very convincing way, so we had no doubt about His involvement. However, I was not at peace in my heart about it (the lady felt the same way). In submission to God, we continued, and after a while, we started making plans to be married.

However, at one point, God told me to leave the relationship. This was the hardest decision of my life, as our families and my pastor were already involved, and she was in a very vulnerable state. I knew that my leaving would hurt her deeply. I couldn’t resist the voice of the Holy Spirit, so I left the relationship. This truly broke me, and for a long time, I was sad about the situation. However, some time afterward, I was visited by some angels in a dream, and they talked with me about different areas of my life, including my recently ended relationship. In that encounter, I was told that since I didn’t feel the peace of God about the relationship, I wasn’t supposed to enter into it, despite hearing the voice of God.

Colossians 3:15 (NIV) says, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace…” The peace of God should be the deciding factor in our lives, not visions or audible voices. So, even if the opportunity is from Him, and the purpose is good, if you do not have His peace about it, reject it. By doing so, you will save yourself from much harm.

Prayer Point:

Let’s thank God for His word today. Let’s ask Him to help us to be sensitive to His voice and to submit to Him.