TODAY’S SCRIPTURE : Nehemiah 1-4 chapters
DEVOTION
CONTEXT – Nehemiah was rebuilding the wall, and Sanballat, Tobiah and few others opposed it.
“When Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he became angry and was greatly incensed. He ridiculed the Jews,” “and in the presence of his associates and the army of Samaria, he said, “What are those feeble Jews doing? Will they restore their wall? Will they offer sacrifices? Will they finish in a day? Can they bring the stones back to life from those heaps of rubble—burned as they are?” Nehemiah 4:1,2 (NIV)
Sanballat and Tobiah were causing discouragement and despair, which in turn was demotivating and dissuading the Jews from building the wall. Instead of reacting and countering them.
NEHEMIAH PRAYED (Nehemiah 4:4).
When you are mocked for your faith,
Looked down,
Insulted,
Discouraged,
Criticized,
WHAT DO YOU DO?
Do you counter them?
Yes/No
Instead, RUN TO JESUS and tell him how you feel in your heart and mind. Receive God’s strength to carry forward His work.
In the next few verses, we see that Sanballat, Tobiah, Arabs, Ammonites, and Ashdodites planned to come fight against Jerusalem and bring confusion among them.
“But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.” Nehemiah 4:9 (NIV)
The Strategy
1. PRAYED TO GOD
2. GUARDED THE CITY
Are we just praying and leaving the rest to itself? PRAY LIKE ONLY GOD CAN HELP YOU.
WORK HARD LIKE ONLY YOU CAN.
Just like the people of Jerusalem as they were rebuilding the wall, they prayed and guarded. Even in our schools, colleges, works, daily tasks, career, job, business, let’s pray and also work hard to our full potential.
PRAYER
Lord, when people mock, criticize, look down, discourage, insult I will only and only seek you with all my heart and mind. No matter how big the opposition is, help me to stand tall in your strength. Help me to pray and also work hard to my fullest potential. Amen.