In order to fly, an aeroplane needs “lift.” Lift comes from speed, and speed comes from “thrust.” Thrust is the power that pushes the aircraft forward, and without it nothing else matters. The aerodynamic design, the well-trained pilot in the cockpit, the sophisticated navigational technology, and the tank full of jet fuel are all useless unless the engines come alive and provide forward motion. In your life the only one who can provide the forward motion is you. God will be your pilot. He will provide the wind beneath your wings and the fuel in your tank, but you have to give Him some momentum to work with. You cannot do God’s part, and God will not do your part. Your part is to get into gear, get off your backside, and get moving. Reinhard Bonnke has said, “God will lift you out of the deepest pit, but He won’t lift you out of an easy chair—you have to do that yourself.” So what are you waiting for? How long will you do nothing while you grow old in the wilderness of inaction?
It is true that God opens doors, and sometimes particular doors are not opened for a variety of reasons. But it is very unlikely that all the doors are shut. Imagine a man sitting at a red light in the downtown area of a big city. The light in front of him turns green, but when he looks ahead he sees that the next five lights are still red. Should he sit at the green light in front of him and just wait for all the other lights to turn green as well? Of course not! He should move through the green light he has. Yet many people fail to move through the green light God has given them because they foresee obstacles ahead that they don’t know how to handle.
In Joshua 3 we read about the children of Israel encountering the obstacle of the Jordan River, which was overflowing and impossible to cross. In obedience to the Lord Joshua told the priests to take the ark of the covenant and go forward into the waters of the Jordan. This surely would have seemed like a ridiculous idea, but look at what happened.