Strength for the Work

They were all trying to frighten us... ~ Nehemiah 6:9

Upon hearing the current condition of his people, the Israelites, Nehemiah wept and prayed and fasted for them. For the Lord had given Nehemiah a burden in his heart for them. And out of this burden grew his desire to protect them by having the wall of Jerusalem rebuilt around them. So, Nehemiah prayed that the Lord would be with him and give him favor before the king. Because of the Lord's favor, the king granted Nehemiah all his requests, (see Nehemiah 1-2). However, "when Samballat the Horonite and Tobian the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites," (Nehemiah 2:10).

Have you ever noticed that when you have a dream, desire, or passion there are many who will try to stop you? Last night, we were watching the Christmas classic, It's a Wonderful Life. I thought about the character George and the defeat and frustration he felt every time he felt his dreams weren't coming true. But the more I thought about it, the more I realized it's all a matter of perspective. Before his run-in with Clarence, the angel, George was miserable and thought his only way out of his mess was to kill himself in hopes that his life insurance policy would help to support his family and business. But after realizing what life would be like if he'd never been born, George realized how many wonderful treasures he had in his life.

That's what dreamers have: perspective. But that's also what the enemy wants to steal. He wants us to stop thinking about the vision and the dream and the purpose for our God-given mission and start thinking about all the problems and what-ifs. Nehemiah's enemies were the same. They threatened him and tried to distract him and said nasty things about him. If Nehemiah had thought about all the things his enemies were saying about him, he might have quit. But instead, he said, "They were all trying to frighten us, thinking, 'Their hands will get too weak for the work, and it will not be completed.' But I prayed, 'Now strengthen my hands,'" (Nehemiah 6:9). We need to keep that mentality and that prayer close to our hearts and ever on our lips, "Lord, strengthen my hands for the work you have called me to. Be a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. Help me to keep going and if I ever feel like quitting, remind me to keep going. In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen."

So the wall was completed...When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this had been done with the help of our God. ~ Nehemiah 6:15-16