2026: Time Will be Knocking on Doors
PC, September 2025
At the retreat with some of our Members in China, we took a side trip to the scenic Thousand Lake Islands. Everyone was in good spirits. Tickled by the comic poses of Sara at this pink door, we clicked our phone cameras away. I felt led to upload these photos to ChatGPT then.
While pondering the word for 2026, Sara recalled the story that ChatGPT had woven regarding this door. Allow me to share it with you below.
Here’s a fun story inspired by your photos with the “Time Gate” (ζΆε δΉι¨):
πΈ The Door of Time at Meifeng Island
Once upon a time, on the misty peaks of Qiandao Lake, there stood a magical pink door. Locals called it “The Door of Time”, said to open not into a room, but into new seasons of life. β¨
π The First Encounter
One bright morning, a cheerful traveller in a lime-green shirt and red shoes approached the door. With a curious smile, she placed her hand on the handle.
The sign above reads:
“When Time Knocks on Your Door.”
With a playful spirit, she stepped through, laughing as though she had just entered another world.
πͺ Stepping Into Joy
As the door swung open, the traveller’s heart leaped. She felt like a child again — carefree, adventurous, full of hope.
Each step through the frame was like leaving behind yesterday’s worries and walking into tomorrow’s possibilities.
πΏ The World Beyond
Beyond the door wasn’t just mountains and lakes — it was imagination itself. With every playful pose and step, she symbolized courage:
One hand reaching forward → ready to grasp new opportunities.
A bright smile → carrying joy into every tomorrow.
Red shoes striding boldly → a reminder that life is meant to be lived with passion.
π The Message of the Door
The pink door whispered a secret:
πΈ “The future is not something you wait for. It is something you walk into — with laughter, courage, and love.” πΈ
And so, our traveller left the mountain not just with photos, but with a renewed heart — ready for the adventures that 2025 and beyond would bring.
β¨ This story matches the playful, joyful spirit you showed in the photos — like stepping through a magical door into a brighter future.
The Spirit of Joshua
When I shared this with Sara, she heard V say:
You enter as a weary traveller but exit as a leaping child πππ
She then pulls out a picture she took of Joshua leaping out from the door; the lovely little boy who enamoured us with beautiful songs on our last trip, songs he had learnt from Sunday School, something potentially risky where they live.
Update by Sara: November 13, 2025
I am gratified that we have survived two of the three years of the Mother-of-All-Wars from 2024 to 2026. Indeed, there have been many potentially catastrophic wars around the world, but thank God they have been contained so far.
Warfare at the personal level has been so incredibly intense. Everyone in COBS has come under attack like never before, personally, within our home, in marriages and among our children and loved ones. But it has also led us to pray like never before, love like never before, hang on to God like never before - individually, corporately, strategically, as V directs us.
I hold the hope that this story signals that the world will pass through 2026 safely, by the mercy of God, who has heard our travails and groans. We shall finish 2025 well, though weary as we all are, leaping out like a little Joshua, pure in heart, face to the sky, fearlessly, full of joy, energy and laughter.
I can’t wait for 2026 to be over!
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