Gatepost

Trudging through the day more than springing, I steal away some time to be with my Maker. And He said to me, "I made this day too, so rejoice in this day."
The refrain echoes in my ears for days and opening my Bible to read in context, "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it," I find this often quoted verse is surrounded by the idea of a gate.
Open to me the gates of righteousness,
that I may enter through them
and give thanks to the Lord.
This is the gate of the Lord;
the righteous shall enter through it.
I thank you that you have answered me
and have become my salvation.
The stone that the builders rejected
has become the cornerstone.
This is the Lord's doing;
it is marvelous in our eyes.
This is the day that the Lord has made;
let us rejoice and be glad in it. Psalm 118:19-24
I don't think I could build a gate, I'm not handy and not detailed enough. From my quick research, it takes some meticulous skills. Of course the gate must be square, but even more importantly, it must hang from a gatepost. I giggled reading WikiHow.com, "fence posts are necessary for installing a fence…you need posts in order to install a gate." Got it? Posts are a must. The essential post is placed in the ground filled half full of concrete and then set, being certain it is straight and vertical, so that the gate can open and close. When set correctly, the rest of the hole is filled with concrete. The post is like the cornerstone of building, it is the first component of construction of a fence and most important since everything else is set in reference to that post. The gatepost determines the position of the entire structure.
Now takes this idea back to Psalm 118's gate. Eternal life, life beyond this is not automatically given. We don't just get it. When Adam and Eve sinned, that privilege was taken away and guarded:
He drove out the man, and at the east of the garden of Eden he placed the cherubim and a flaming sword that turned every way to guard the way to the tree of life. Genesis 3:24
Though we were separated from the tree of eternal life, all is not lost. God in His mercy made a way to reenter the garden and eat from the tree of life. If there were a fence surrounding that tree of life, Jesus is the cornerstone of the fence and he is the gate.
I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. John 14:6
This is God's marvelous doing, that Jesus would be the only way for us to taste the tree of eternal life.
Every day I live is a day I should stop and realize that Jesus made a way for me to enter the garden and that means it is a day to rejoice. The joy springs from the saving, the rescuing, the deliverance from peril, an entrance into the garden. I should consistently realize that the gate of righteousness has been opened to me by Jesus who is the gate and gatepost.
Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates. Revelation 22:14
Do we realize how blessed we are? Every day is a day to marvel in the truth of God rescuing us and making a way for us to enter the gate, to eat from the tree of life. I would like to complain about the day: I'm cold. I'm bored. I'm annoyed. I'm overwhelmed. I'm angry. But when I put those grumblings into perspective, my moaning should become rejoicing! I will rejoice in this day and be happy, happy, happy!

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