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"Do not fret...trust in the Lord...and He shall bring it to pass."
– Psalms 37:1-5b (NKJV, excerpts)
– Psalms 37:1-5b (NKJV, excerpts)
"Well, here we are at last," said Gandalf.... "But this door was not made to be a secret known only to Dwarves."
At the top, as high as Gandalf could reach, was an arch of interlacing letters in an Elvish character. "What does the writing say?" asked Frodo, who was trying to decipher the inscription on the arch.
"The words are in the elven-tongue of the West of Middle Earth in the Elder days," answered Gandalf. "But they do not say anything of importance to us. They say only: The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter."
"What does it mean by 'speak, friend, and enter'?" asked Merry.
"These doors are probably governed by words. Some dwarf-gates will open only at special times, or for particular persons. And some have locks and keys that are still needed when all necessary times and words are known."
"But do you not know the word, Gandalf?" asked Boromir.
"NO!" said the wizard.
― From The Two Towers (1954) Chapter IV (excerpts), by J.R.R. Tolkien
* * *
"Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and at the worst possible moment," according to Murphy's Law.
Though I agree with Mr. Murphy on this universal truth, he clearly failed to notice myriad other such cosmic laws that govern our existence. For example, the Law of Parking Lots: "No matter how many hundreds of vehicles are parked in the lot, it will be the car right next to yours where the occupants are loading or unloading, with doors wide open and a shopping cart blocking your path, making it impossible to enter your vehicle."
Or, there's the Law of Vacations: "Each day closer you get to your scheduled out-of-office date, it becomes exponentially more difficult to depart. In fact, on your final day in the office, everything will break loose rendering it impossible to leave."
But, the most predictable and incontrovertible law I've discovered is the Law of Double Doors: "When you approach a small business with a double entry door, one side will invariably be locked. And it will be whichever side you try first."
By this time you're wondering what all of this has to do with the Scriptures we've been exploring: about destressing our lives and yielding our necks to Jesus' yoke, thereby finding true rest for our soul. Specifically, our Psalm 37 journey has brought us to the end of verse 5: "Trust also in [the Lord], and He shall bring it to pass."
Surely one of the diciest dimensions of the Christian life, and a source of our greatest anxiety and stress, is that of faith. Remembering all the times I've prayed and not received the answer I expected, or not received it within the time frame that it was so desperately needed ... How can I trust that God will come through ... or, for that matter, that He's even listening?? (Come on! Don't say you haven't been there!)
Consider the Law of Double Doors. Sure, that's easy. After I try the first side and find it locked, do I stand there and pound on it? Certainly not! After rolling my eyes and tsk-ing, I quickly move to the opposite door which, of course, will be the unlocked one. End of dilemma!
* * *
Back to Gandalf and his companions, standing before a locked door at night, with deadly perils closing in behind and a wizard who did not know the secret password. After trying every known door-opening phrase he could recall or imagine, in every language of Middle Earth dating back to the Elder Days, all to no avail, Gandalf had an epiphany.
In fact, the inscription that he had said just an hour ago was "of no importance" actually held the key to opening the door! Rather than, "Speak, friend, and enter," the correct interpretation of the runes was, "Say 'friend,' and enter." So simple! Millennia ago, these doors had been for public access with minimal security. If you were a friend of Moria, you had only to say so, and you would be allowed access. Gandalf had only to speak the ancient word for "friend" and, sure enough, the doors swung open and his entourage was able to hurry inside where they were out of danger. (Or, so they thought! But you'll have to read Tolkien's masterpiece Trilogy to find out what befell them in their journey under the mountain.)
* * *
What's my own M.O. when it comes to the locked doors I encounter along my journey of faith? (Which, by the way, are put there quite intentionally by my loving Father to train me in how to conquer them.) Too often I keep pounding on the door till I eventually either (a) give up—turning my back on God's plans and purposes to go about my own hobbies instead—or else (b) make believe the door is open and I'm on the other side of it enjoying sweet communion with Christ when, in fact (as in the fairy tale of The Emperor's New Clothes), I know very well it's not so.
So, what's a Christian to do?
First, stop fretting! Cease trying to force the door open with our human thoughts and methods. Instead, like the faithful protagonist in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, let us come to the realization that we have "a key ... called Promise, that will open any door in Doubting Castle."
Ponder the promise of our text in Psalm 37: "Do not fret...trust in the Lord...and He shall bring it to pass." Or, as Paul tells us in greater detail, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)
In other words, if the door of human endeavor is locked, try the other door--seeking God in prayer until He brings it to pass. Until He gives us the secret password that opens us into His glorious plan and purpose for us in the situation at hand ... which, by the way, won't always lead us "out of danger," but where He will be by our side bringing us through the Valley of Danger and Shadow of Death to the Mountain of Praise beyond.
In conclusion, it all ties back to the principle of the yoke. Are we not weary, anxious, and heavy-laden with the failures and locked doors we continually face in our well-meaning efforts to serve Jesus? Let us learn of Him and find rest for our souls, through prayer and trust, as He so graciously and patiently gets our attention and redirects our eyes to find the door that is unlocked.
At the top, as high as Gandalf could reach, was an arch of interlacing letters in an Elvish character. "What does the writing say?" asked Frodo, who was trying to decipher the inscription on the arch.
"The words are in the elven-tongue of the West of Middle Earth in the Elder days," answered Gandalf. "But they do not say anything of importance to us. They say only: The Doors of Durin, Lord of Moria. Speak, friend, and enter."
"What does it mean by 'speak, friend, and enter'?" asked Merry.
"These doors are probably governed by words. Some dwarf-gates will open only at special times, or for particular persons. And some have locks and keys that are still needed when all necessary times and words are known."
"But do you not know the word, Gandalf?" asked Boromir.
"NO!" said the wizard.
― From The Two Towers (1954) Chapter IV (excerpts), by J.R.R. Tolkien
* * *
"Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and at the worst possible moment," according to Murphy's Law.
Though I agree with Mr. Murphy on this universal truth, he clearly failed to notice myriad other such cosmic laws that govern our existence. For example, the Law of Parking Lots: "No matter how many hundreds of vehicles are parked in the lot, it will be the car right next to yours where the occupants are loading or unloading, with doors wide open and a shopping cart blocking your path, making it impossible to enter your vehicle."
Or, there's the Law of Vacations: "Each day closer you get to your scheduled out-of-office date, it becomes exponentially more difficult to depart. In fact, on your final day in the office, everything will break loose rendering it impossible to leave."
But, the most predictable and incontrovertible law I've discovered is the Law of Double Doors: "When you approach a small business with a double entry door, one side will invariably be locked. And it will be whichever side you try first."
By this time you're wondering what all of this has to do with the Scriptures we've been exploring: about destressing our lives and yielding our necks to Jesus' yoke, thereby finding true rest for our soul. Specifically, our Psalm 37 journey has brought us to the end of verse 5: "Trust also in [the Lord], and He shall bring it to pass."
Surely one of the diciest dimensions of the Christian life, and a source of our greatest anxiety and stress, is that of faith. Remembering all the times I've prayed and not received the answer I expected, or not received it within the time frame that it was so desperately needed ... How can I trust that God will come through ... or, for that matter, that He's even listening?? (Come on! Don't say you haven't been there!)
Consider the Law of Double Doors. Sure, that's easy. After I try the first side and find it locked, do I stand there and pound on it? Certainly not! After rolling my eyes and tsk-ing, I quickly move to the opposite door which, of course, will be the unlocked one. End of dilemma!
* * *
Back to Gandalf and his companions, standing before a locked door at night, with deadly perils closing in behind and a wizard who did not know the secret password. After trying every known door-opening phrase he could recall or imagine, in every language of Middle Earth dating back to the Elder Days, all to no avail, Gandalf had an epiphany.
In fact, the inscription that he had said just an hour ago was "of no importance" actually held the key to opening the door! Rather than, "Speak, friend, and enter," the correct interpretation of the runes was, "Say 'friend,' and enter." So simple! Millennia ago, these doors had been for public access with minimal security. If you were a friend of Moria, you had only to say so, and you would be allowed access. Gandalf had only to speak the ancient word for "friend" and, sure enough, the doors swung open and his entourage was able to hurry inside where they were out of danger. (Or, so they thought! But you'll have to read Tolkien's masterpiece Trilogy to find out what befell them in their journey under the mountain.)
* * *
What's my own M.O. when it comes to the locked doors I encounter along my journey of faith? (Which, by the way, are put there quite intentionally by my loving Father to train me in how to conquer them.) Too often I keep pounding on the door till I eventually either (a) give up—turning my back on God's plans and purposes to go about my own hobbies instead—or else (b) make believe the door is open and I'm on the other side of it enjoying sweet communion with Christ when, in fact (as in the fairy tale of The Emperor's New Clothes), I know very well it's not so.
So, what's a Christian to do?
First, stop fretting! Cease trying to force the door open with our human thoughts and methods. Instead, like the faithful protagonist in John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress, let us come to the realization that we have "a key ... called Promise, that will open any door in Doubting Castle."
Ponder the promise of our text in Psalm 37: "Do not fret...trust in the Lord...and He shall bring it to pass." Or, as Paul tells us in greater detail, "Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)
In other words, if the door of human endeavor is locked, try the other door--seeking God in prayer until He brings it to pass. Until He gives us the secret password that opens us into His glorious plan and purpose for us in the situation at hand ... which, by the way, won't always lead us "out of danger," but where He will be by our side bringing us through the Valley of Danger and Shadow of Death to the Mountain of Praise beyond.
In conclusion, it all ties back to the principle of the yoke. Are we not weary, anxious, and heavy-laden with the failures and locked doors we continually face in our well-meaning efforts to serve Jesus? Let us learn of Him and find rest for our souls, through prayer and trust, as He so graciously and patiently gets our attention and redirects our eyes to find the door that is unlocked.
Why not pray ...
"Dear Father,
I pray according to the words of the Apostle Paul (Ephesians 1:17-18), "Father of glory, [please give me] the spirit of wisdom and revelation ... the eyes of [my] understanding being enlightened" to stop fretting—to stop pounding for days, months, and years on the same locked doors—but, rather, to yield to Your yoke, trust and rest, as You "bring it to pass" Every. Single. Time. Hallelujah!
In Jesus' name. Amen."
---
Originally published as a “Bradstix” devotional on the National Minute of Prayer Facebook page 5/18/2025.
Copyright © Brad Fenichel 2025 All Rights Reserved
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