Notes
Jesus never said that when God closes one door, He’ll open another.
That phrase may sound spiritual, but it didn’t come from Jesus—it came from Alexander Graham Bell. And while it may be comforting, it’s not scriptural. This kind of thinking has actually stunted the maturity of many believers. When life gets hard, we’re often quick to look for an easier path and assume God must be closing the door. But the truth is: sometimes God leaves the door open and calls us to walk through the hard things.
Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way, consider it an opportunity for great joy. For you know that when your faith is tested, your endurance has a chance to grow. So let it grow, for when your endurance is fully developed, you will be perfect and complete, needing nothing.
James 1:2-4
Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Romans 5:1-5
“I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
John 16:33
Marriage, parenting, growing up, working, and navigating life—it’s all hard. But we don’t grow by avoiding difficulty. We grow by persevering with God in the middle of it. In the early Church, suffering was expected. Faith wasn’t about ease; it was about endurance. That’s why we have to challenge the idea that closed doors mean we’re supposed to quit or change direction. Sometimes the path God puts in front of us is the hard one—on purpose.
When Pharaoh finally let the people go, God did not lead them along the main road that runs through Philistine territory, even though that was the shortest route to the Promised Land. God said, “If the people are faced with a battle, they might change their minds and return to Egypt.” So God led them in a roundabout way through the wilderness toward the Red Sea. Thus the Israelites left Egypt like an army ready for battle.
Exodus 13:17-18
As Pharaoh approached, the people of Israel looked up and panicked when they saw the Egyptians overtaking them. They cried out to the Lord, and they said to Moses, “Why did you bring us out here to die in the wilderness? Weren’t there enough graves for us in Egypt? What have you done to us? Why did you make us leave Egypt? Didn’t we tell you this would happen while we were still in Egypt? We said, ‘Leave us alone! Let us be slaves to the Egyptians. It’s better to be a slave in Egypt than a corpse in the wilderness!’”
Exodus 14:10-12
God didn’t lead the Israelites along the easy road, because He knew they weren’t ready for the battles ahead. He brought them the long way through the wilderness to protect and prepare them. But even then, when Pharaoh chased them, they panicked. They actually begged to go back to slavery because it was more familiar. The easier road is often just the road we know—and God wants more for us than that.
I am praying not only for these disciples but also for all who will ever believe in me through their message. I pray that they will all be one, just as you and I are one—as you are in me, Father, and I am in you. And may they be in us so that the world will believe you sent me.
“I have given them the glory you gave me, so they may be one as we are one. I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.
John 17:20-23
We weren’t meant to do this alone. Jesus prayed that His followers would be united in Him, just as He is one with the Father. God desires deep connection with us and between us, so that the world will know who He is through our perseverance, unity, and transformation. The Christian life isn’t about escaping trouble—it’s about being transformed by God through it. When we endure hardship with Jesus, our lives become testimonies that point others to Him. God doesn’t call us to an easy life. He calls us to an impactful one.
Group Questions
- Have you ever thought or said “When God closes a door, He opens another one”? How does this week’s message challenge or confirm your understanding of that idea?
- Can you think of a time when God asked you to endure something difficult instead of taking an easier way out? What did He teach you through that?
- In what area of your life do you see God trying to develop spiritual endurance?
- How can we better support one another in persevering through hard seasons so that the world sees Christ in us?
Prayer
Thank You for being with us in every trial and storm. Help us to lean into your truth. Teach us to trust that when life is hard, knowing you are doing a deep work in our hearts. Give us the endurance to persevere, strengthen our character, and grow our hope. Keep us united as your people, so the world may see your power in and through us.