Today’s scripture reading is Revelation 4.
“After this, I looked, and there in heaven, a door stood open…” Revelation 4:1 NRSV
Many of the people that I went to seminary with were second-career folks, not recent college graduates like I was at the time. On my first day of class, I saw only one guy who looked even remotely close to my age. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to speak to him after class.
The next morning, I opened the door of my apartment to retrieve my newspaper. At the exact same time, the door of the apartment next to mine opened. To my surprise it was the guy I’d seen in class the day before; we were neighbors! And we became (and remain) great friends!
One of the things I like most about Marcus is his gift of hospitality. When we were in seminary, his apartment door was always unlocked and we were always welcome to just drop in, whether he was there or not. And you didn’t knock on Marcus’ door…you just went on inside like it was your place and you made yourself at home. I spent more time in that apartment than I did my own.
In John’s vision (revelation), the door of heaven isn’t locked either. It’s as if John is welcome to come in anytime and isn’t even required to knock before entering. But John’s first thought upon entering was not to make himself at home, it was to worship God and to never stop.
Because of the pandemic, there are a lot of people who are still not comfortable coming to church for worship. But the door remains open for you to worship God and never stop, even if you’re not physically in a church building.
One opportunity exists at www.youtube.com/stmarkstn. If this opportunity doesn’t seem to meet your spiritual needs, let me know and I’ll be happy to help you find one that will.
May God grant us the grace to enter into God’s presence with worship.
