The Daily Devotional
Monday, December 8, 2025
A Door No One Can Shut: An Advent Devotional on Mercy Remembered
“For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.” — Psalm 36:9
Introduction
Advent is a season of holy expectation—a time when we watch for God to break into ordinary life with extraordinary grace. Today’s devotional reflects on a story of unexpected mercy and the quiet ways God opens doors in His perfect timing.
Reflection
Advent teaches us that God’s redemptive work often begins where no one is looking—in the margins, in the cold, in the quiet places of need. The story of Penelope Eddy and old Jack brings that truth to life in a profoundly human way.
Jack, a homeless man hardened by rejection, expected ridicule when a well-dressed woman approached him. Instead, she offered a meal, dignity, and compassion. What he could not have known was that decades earlier, he had been the one extending mercy—offering a young, desperate woman food he paid for himself, shielding her from humiliation. He opened a door she could not open for herself.
Now, in God’s timing, that compassion returned to him multiplied.
This is the miracle the police officer witnessed—an Advent miracle. Like the Christ-child who came quietly and unexpectedly to a troubled world, God’s mercy appeared before Jack in a moment of reversal and grace. Light shone into a life used to darkness, and hope broke through where cynicism had settled like winter frost.
It is a reminder that we often have no idea how God is weaving His purposes through the smallest of acts, how He works in both the giving and the receiving of kindness. Advent invites us to notice His light breaking into the world through simple, human mercy.
Application
During this season of waiting and preparation, consider:
Where might God be inviting you to show unexpected kindness this week?: A small act—holding a door, offering a warm word, checking on a neighbor—might be the hinge on which someone’s future turns.
Who do you need to see with new eyes?: Someone overlooked, someone rough around the edges, someone who has grown cynical from hurt.
How has God opened doors for you through others?: Advent calls us to gratitude as much as generosity.
Let the story of Jack and Ms. Eddy encourage you: compassion is never wasted, and God often brings it full circle in ways we could never orchestrate.
Conclusion
Advent reminds us that God opens doors no one can shut and closes doors no one can force open. His mercy often arrives quietly, in the form of ordinary people with extraordinary love. Like light dawning over the desert horizon, His grace breaks forth in moments of compassion that change lives—sometimes decades later.
Walk today in expectation: the smallest kindness you offer may become someone else’s miracle.
Prayer
Gracious Lord, in this holy season of Advent, open my eyes to the quiet places where Your light is breaking through. Teach me to offer kindness without hesitation and to trust that You are at work in every act of mercy. Help me remember that You have opened countless doors for me, often through the hands of others. May my heart be tender, my spirit generous, and my life a reflection of Your unfailing love. Amen.
Devotional by: Kenny Sallee, ThM — Deming, NM, USA
The Bible texts are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible (NRSV)© 1989, 1993, the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
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