An Object Lesson on Doors

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We just returned from a vacation to the beach. It was an appreciated respite for us at one of our favorite spots, Daytona Beach, Florida. I think we love that area so much because it has something for both of us to enjoy. For my husband, that something is Daytona International Speedway, and the multiple car shows and races held there.

I must confess that we do not thoroughly enjoy the 12-hour car ride down there. So, we usually take our time and make several stops along the way. But on this trip to Daytona, we made only two stops for gas and snacks.

During one stop near Dothan, Alabama, I headed inside a small convenience store while Randy refilled our gas tank. As I approached one of the store’s double doors, a young man dressed in camo attire rushed to the other door to hold it open for me. Now, I admit that I raised a couple of redneck hunters myself, and I knew for a fact that it was turkey season there in Alabama. So, I was not surprised or intimidated by this young man’s clothing.

What shocked me a bit was the fact that he rushed to the doors to get there before me and waited with the door open. It was such a kind and gallant gesture.

And sadly, it’s a gesture that seems to be occurring less these days. I cannot tell you how many times I have approached the door of a business and had men (and women) of all ages practically slam the door in my face. It’s almost as if we are all so wrapped up in our own world that we do not even see others around us. Or maybe parents have simply forgotten to teach their children common courtesy. Whatever the case, I have recently noticed a lack of open doors and manners.

Because of those earlier encounters with lacking manners, I enthusiastically thanked my young Alabama doorman and added, “Please tell your mother thank you as well, because she raised you right – with some great manners.”

He smiled and said laughingly, “I will tell her because you are exactly right. She made sure of that!”

Now, for anyone who has read more than one or two of my blogs, you know that this pleasant encounter was only the beginning. God seems to always give me some amazing object lessons. Evidently, I am slow to learn because I had another door encounter the very next day and still did not “get it.”

Early the next morning, on the first full day of our vacation, we stopped for more gas before we drove along the seashore from Daytona to St. Augustine. This time, my object lesson on doors came from a young woman about the same age as my Alabama gentleman. This precious young woman almost ran from her car to grab the door for me and open it with the most gracious, loving smile ever.

I recognized her instantly and remarked, “Thank you! I can tell by looking at you that you belong to Jesus, don’t you?”

She smiled from ear to ear and said, “Yes, I could not make it without Him.”

With those words, she went her way, and I went mine. But I told my husband, as I returned to the car, that I had just met one of my sisters whom I would get to know better in heaven.

He just smiled and shook his head. He is not surprised when I find adventure in the mundane moments of life.

But even after this door adventure with my newly found sister in Christ, I still did not comprehend the godly object lesson in those doors, not until we spent the day in my favorite Florida city of St. Augustine.

It was a time filled with warm sun, cool breezes, and perfect temperatures. But as we strolled the crowded streets of our nation’s oldest city, I became absolutely exasperated at the number of grown men (of all ages) who literally forced me off the sidewalk as they strode carelessly down the middle of the walkways. Repeatedly, I experienced these rude sidewalk encounters, not to mention multiple doors practically slammed in my face.

These repeated encounters shocked me, to say the least. But then, it finally hit me that God had a teaching agenda in mind for me. So, I researched the topic of manners, and what I found really did not surprise me.

According to data published by the Pew Research Center on March 12, 2025, almost half (47%) of the adults polled in America believe rudeness has increased markedly in the past five years, with 20% of that number declaring that people behave a lot more rudely than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Various studies point to the isolation experienced during the pandemic as the cause of our waning common courtesy, while other data credits this increasing rudeness to the rise in technology usage and ever-increasing levels of daily stress.

Some studies focused solely on the trait of narcissism, or high esteem coupled with low empathy, as the root of this rise in rudeness. In fact, the Department of Psychology at Michigan State University released a study on narcissism in 2025 and found that it is not just an American problem, but a global one, especially within the younger generations.

Maybe so, but I experienced one more door encounter during my vacation that left me hopeful about the young people in America. My final lesson involved a breakfast encounter with another young man who also rushed to the door of the restaurant to open it for me. He was a military guy, meeting with two other men for an off-duty breakfast. All three of these men were mannerly and thoughtful, not just with me, but also with the staff and customers of the small diner.

Of course, I had to stop and thank them for their courtesy. It was the best part of my breakfast, if the truth be told, the climax of my object lesson on doors.

Because in the end, I realized that I should not have been so concerned with the doors that were not open to me or the walkway that was blocked by grown men. Nor should I have been so impressed with the doors opened by mannerly young people.

I should have been more concerned with another door, the one discussed in Revelation 3:20,

“Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.”

Now, isn’t that a kicker?

I had the focus of my vacation “door lesson” all wrong. I should not have been asking, “Hey, will you open the door for me?”

Instead, the real question should always be, “Will you open the door to Jesus?”

His door is the only door that really matters in the end.

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