Doormat Ministry

by Kaji Douša | published on Jan 28, 2023

So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God. – Galatians 4:7 (NRSV)

I’ve observed that one of the most difficult impediments to wellness is in setting aside the bad things we think we “deserve.” If we think that we deserve to be mistreated or to mistreat. That we deserve to stay under the fist or boot of an abuser or to hold that fist or to stomp that boot.  

If we believe that our place is on the floor to be someone’s doormat or to walk across someone’s back? Then: right there on the floor is where we will stay. Or we will put—and try to keep—someone down. 

Getting up is so. So. Hard. Sometimes that boot or that fist fights to violent effect to ensure that we stay right there. Unclenching the fist is so hard when we think we deserve to harm.  

But I want you to know this: God doesn’t want anyone on that floor. God did not form you in the womb, breathe life into your lungs, walk you into life, bless you at every turn, grant you every good thing you’ve had and done for you to be on the floor or to put someone there.  

If you find yourself in the position of a doormat? Someone did that. But it wasn’t God.  

You, Child of God, are heir to God’s promises. You are heir to heaven on earth!  

There is no such thing as a Doormat Ministry. 

But so many of us are there. I see you. I know you. I love you. More importantly: God loves you.  

May we help you up? 

Prayer
May I live as your beloved, deserving of love, giving of love first. Amen.

Kaji DoušaAbout the Author
Kaji Douša is the Senior Pastor of The Park Avenue Christian Church, a congregation of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) and the United Church of Christ, in New York City.