Charles Stanley Daily Devotional 16 December 2025 (In Touch) Monday Message
Charles Stanley Daily Devotional TOPIC: When God Closes a Door
TODAY’S SCRIPTURE: Acts 16:1-12
Have you ever prayed about a situation and felt confident of God’s will, only to discover that what you thought would happen didn’t come to pass?
On Paul’s second missionary journey, he and Silas had an experience like that. After originally intending to visit previous church plants, they instead decided to move into new territory with the gospel. But the Holy Spirit stopped them from going into Asia. So they went to Mysia with the intention of heading east to Bithynia. Yet once again the Holy Spirit closed the door.
At that point, they may have wondered why God would prevent them from preaching the gospel. After all, hadn’t Jesus commissioned all believers to share their faith (Matthew 28:19-20)? The answer came to Paul in a dream as the Lord redirected them to Greece—a nation with great metropolitan cities. From there, the gospel could spread rapidly, and eventually Paul circled around to Ephesus, bringing the gospel to Asia. By the time John wrote Revelation, there were at least seven churches on that continent.
God often uses closed doors to redirect us into His perfect will and timing. Therefore, the wisest response is to rely on His infinite wisdom, wait for His clear direction, and follow the promptings of the Holy Spirit. We simply need to trust and obey.
BIBLE IN A YEAR: Titus 1-3, Philemon 1
MEDITATION: God often uses closed doors to redirect us into His perfect will and timing.
Dr. Charles F. Stanley was the founder of In Touch Ministries and a New York Times best-selling author. Throughout his ministry, he demonstrated a keen awareness of people’s needs and provided Christ-centered biblically based principles for everyday life