WHEN GOD SHUTS ONE DOOR HE OPENS ANOTHER
Acts 16:6-10
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR: Celebrating Mothers
1. We all know what today is! It’s the Special day to Celebrate all our Mothers! That’s why Mother’s Day is the 3rd most celebrated holiday, just after Christmas and Easter.
2. If we’re not mothers, we still all have had mothers, so we can appreciate the special place they hold in our lives.
3. Being a mother isn’t easy. One said, “It’s not easy being a mother. If it were easy, fathers would do it.”
4. Mothers never stop being mothers, even when their children are grown. One son said, “During one of my visits to my parent’s house, my mother made blitzes (a pancake rolled up with sour cream inside). After a while, she said, ‘Bob, why don’t you have a couple more blitzes.’ He answered, ‘No, I’m stuffed; I’ve already had 8 of them.’ She said, ‘Actually you’ve had 11, but who’s counting?’”
5. So would all Mothers stand. Applause. Let’s pray for our Mother’s: "Heavenly Father, we thank You for the gift of motherhood. Today, we celebrate the loving sacrifice of mothers, both biological and spiritual, who nurture and guide us in Your ways. Bless them with joy, strength, and love to continue their selfless devotion. May they feel deeply appreciated and honored not just today, but every day. Amen."
B. GREATEST FEAR: MISSING OUR PURPOSE. One of the strongest fears of young people is to not accomplish their life-purpose. Listen to these young people:
1. “My biggest fear is never taking a risk in an effort to find my true calling.” – Anthony, New York City
2. “My greatest fear is to go through life living small but not realizing it until it’s too late.” –Rebekka, Stuttgart
3. “My greatest fear would be missing out on my purpose here on earth. … I know I have a purpose that I am not yet serving. – Danielle, Sacramento
4. “To go through life without leaving a positive mark. – Luciana, Sintra, Portugal
5. “My greatest fear is regretting all that I didn’t do” once I reach old age – Ralph, North Brunswick
6. We’re going to hear how Paul kept hitting roadblocks and see how God redirected him.
C. TEXT
6 Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia. 7 When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not allow them to. 8 So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas. 9 During the night Paul had a vision of a man of Macedonia standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10 After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them. Acts 16:6-10
D. THESIS
1. Paul was in modern day Turkey and kept trying to go into new areas north of it to preach, but the Holy Spirit kept stopping him. At last, he had a dream which directed him to go to Greece.
2. Many of us have this happen to us – we try one thing or another -- trying to find what we’re supposed to do in life. We sense a destiny, a purpose, and we don’t want to miss it.
3. The title of this message is “When God Shuts One Door, He Opens Another.” I’m talking about finding God’s best will for your life.
I. GOD’S WAY OFTEN DOESN’T LOOK LIKE THE BEST WAY
A. IMPORTANCE OF BEING LED BY GOD
1. ILLUS. Rom. 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” If you want the Lord to order your steps, you must be led and filled with the Holy Ghost.
2. Rick Potter told how when he was hang-gliding behind a power boat his first time, he was at the dizzying height of 2,500 feet. Suddenly the rope tether to the speed boat snapped.
3. Rick was initially scared to death, but the hang-glide pilot reassured him it was alright.
4. Rick realized he could enjoy the spectacular descent safely back to earth in great spirals. It turned into one of the most exhilarating adventures of his life.
B. WHY ARE WE ON AN UNUSUAL PATH?
1. God alone can see the future; He knows the best way for us to go. The way God chooses sometimes LOOKS LIKE THE WRONG WAY. Think of when Joseph was sold into slavery. Did that look like God was promoting him? Or when Israel wandered in the wilderness for 40 years? Or when Paul was caught in the hurricane for 14 days? All of these circumstances looked like God was on vacation, that everything was running amuck. But God was very much in charge.
2. God usually was doing “ON-THE-JOB-TRAINING” or was helping them go to the next level. Sometimes people don’t obey God or listen to Him, so He has to put them on SIDETRACKS or a HOLDING PATTERN. Once we start paying attention and desire positive change, then God can put us back on track.
3. Also, GOD WANTS TO START US OFF AS SERVANTS -- in the lowest position, a “not-so-glorious spot,” and work us up into the leading spot. Most people want to go straight to the top job, first. But God wants to teach us humility. With position, comes PRIDE. God wants us to spiritually grow into those top positions over time. That’s His plan and it’s for our good.
C. ILLUS.: BLESSINGS IN DISGUISE
1. The things we think of as failures and problems can often end up being blessings in disguise.
2. In the late 19th century, cotton was king in South Alabama. Cotton was the sole crop and brought prosperity to that part of the country.
3. In the early 20th century a natural disaster occurred. The Mexican Boll Weevil crossed into Texas and spread from here. Those little boll weevils loved cotton and by 1915, the farmers in South Alabama were broke.
4. One farmer decided to try growing peanuts and in the first year produced over 6,000 bushels. Other farmers planted peanuts and other crops, and prosperity soon returned.
5. What was first seen as a disaster–a closed door for cotton–actually became a tremendous blessing because the farmers were forced to diversify. In 1919 the city of Enterprise, Alabama erected a monument to the Boll Weevil. That’s a great attitude: When one door is shut, don’t be disappointed!
II. WHY DOES GOD SHUT DOORS?
A. GOD IS ALWAYS WORKING
1. People take days off – but God never takes a day off –He’s always at work! He’s at work in the morning and He’s also at work in the nighttime.
2. John 5:17 says, “Jesus said to them, ‘My Father is always at his work to this very day, and I too am working.’”
3. Sometimes what God’s doing is seen and sometimes it’s invisible. At times He works with us and at times against us – if we’re going against His will.
4. And we all have a work to do and ought to be busy doing what God created us to do.
B. THERE ARE REASONS DOORS ARE SHUT:
1. We’re not ready – we need training.
2. The time is not right (“My time has not come”).
3. There are dangers to us, or God knows we will be defeated, and He doesn’t want us to experience that.
4. There’s a better door/opportunity just around the corner (wife, husband, job, etc. Don’t settle for less).
C. LISTENING? THE STORY OF ELLIE
1. Ellie Braun lives in Canada. She decided to go see her mother in the next city. Snow had started coming down with a vengeance. The still small voice inside said, "Head for home now!"
2. Not wanting to disappoint her mother, she kept driving. After the visit she decided to head home. It took 3½ hours to make what should have been a 1½ hour trip.
3. Halfway home, the inner voice said, "Turn off the exit and sleep at your brother Don's house." "No,” she responded, “I want to get home."
4. Then a hair-raising event unfolded. Just past Don’s exit, a vehicle pulling a camper lost control and careened across the meridian, aiming straight for her vehicle.
5. “I couldn't believe my eyes. There was no place to go and nothing I could do. I could only watch mesmerized and HOPE my vehicle could get out of his way before impact.”
6. Luckily his vehicle flew past, missing her only by inches, but showering her car with ice and snow. “All I could say was ‘Oh my gosh!’”
7. “I learned a valuable lesson that day: when that small voice speaks to me, I need to listen!”
III. HOW TO RECOGNIZE THE RIGHT DOOR
A. 1ST, 2ND & 3RD BEST WILLS
1. The old Sears and Roebuck Catalog lists three levels of quality for the same product. For instance, you could order a basic lawn mower–it was good. Or you could order one with more horsepower–it was labeled better. Or you could opt for the most expensive one that was self-propelled–it was listed as best. You could choose which one you’d rather have.
2. God also has a 1st Best will, 2nd Best will, 3rd Best will for your life. If one doesn’t work out for you, you can still go for the next best will.
3. Paul talked about this in Romans 12:2 when he said, “be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his GOOD, PLEASING and PERFECT will.” So there’s more than one will for your life! If you miss one – life’s not over – God has another one for you. (A good example is 1 Sam. 12:20; “You’ve sinned, but don’t stop serving the Lord.”)
B. HOW TO IDENTIFY THE RIGHT DOOR
1. STAY IN PRAYER, the Word, and full of the Spirit – so you can be sensitive to the prompting of the Holy Spirit.
2. IF THE CHOICE IS UNGODLY or violates God’s commands in the Word, you don’t have to pray about whether it’s God’s will – IT’S NOT. God commanded you NOT to marry unbelievers, so you don’t need to pray about that. It’s NOT God’s will for you to move in with your girlfriend or boyfriend. God’s already told you (in His Word) not to be close friends with ungodly people – those doing drugs, alcohol, with wild lifestyles. “Bad company corrupts good character” 1 Cor. 15:33. God says, “Come out from among them and be separate,” says the Lord, “and I will receive you as sons and daughters.” 2 Cor. 6:17. God doesn’t want you going to clubs/bars.
3. CHECK YOUR MOTIVES. Why are you wanting this? Is it for the money? Popularity? Selfish desires? Reasons of pride?
4. If it’s God’s will, CLOSE FAMILY (wife, parents) WILL AGREE with your decision. “In the multitude of counselors there is safety” Pr. 11:14.
5. PRAY FOR GOD TO BLOCK IT if it’s not His will; He’s faithful to do this. You can, like Gideon, pray for confirmation from God.
6. FOLLOW THE WAY OF PEACE (Mt. 10:13). If something is not in the will of God, we will often feel inner conflict or a lack of peace. The more Jonah tried to avoid Nineveh, the worse the storm grew. We’re supposed to “walk with God.” Sometimes we stray off by ourselves, we begin to feel like God’s not around. That’s evidence in itself that we’re not where we need to be.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION: Lining Up The Lights
1. There is a harbor in Italy that can only be reached by sailing through a narrow channel filled with dangerous rocks. Through the years, many ships were wrecked when they tried to enter the harbor at night.
2. So the harbor engineers erected three lights on tall poles. One light was in the harbor and the other two were on the shore beyond. When the three lights were perfectly lined up, the ship could proceed safely into the harbor. If only two were lined up, the captain knew he was off course.
3. Just so, God has provided three lights for us so that we can find the right path in life: the light of circumstances, the 2nd light of the voice of the Holy Spirit, and the 3rd light of God’s Word. When you get all three of these lined up in unison, you know you can proceed safely.
B. THE CALL
1. How many of you feel like you’ve had one door shut in front of you and you want God to open another one? How many of you need wisdom to make a decision? Or to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit?
2. How many of your need salvation – that is, to know the saving power of Jesus? Slip that hand up. PRAY THE SINNER’S PRAYER WITH ME.
3. Lastly, I want to wish all Mothers a wonderful Mother’s Day. We have a special gift for you to pick up in the foyer on your way out – a scrumptious chocolate-covered strawberry. Happy Mother’s Day!
[This is a rewrite of David Dykes message of the same title.]
