PRAYER:
ANTIDOTE TO CHALLENGES
MEMORISE
So
built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof:
for the people had a mind to work.
Nehemiah 4:6
READ
Nehemiah 2:18-20
18 Then I told them of the hand of my God which was
good upon me; as also the king's words that he had spoken unto me. And they
said, Let us rise up and build. So they strengthened their hands for this good
work.
19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, and Tobiah the
servant, the Ammonite, and Geshem the Arabian, heard it, they laughed us to
scorn, and despised us, and said, What is this thing that ye do? will ye rebel
against the king?
20 Then answered I them, and said unto them, The
God of heaven, he will prosper us; therefore we his servants will arise and
build: but ye have no portion, nor right, nor memorial, in Jerusalem.
MESSAGE
Every good builder has a foe, and that is the
discourager. As we have read in the passage for today, Nehemiah determined to rebuild
the destroyed city of Jerusalem; but then, he was faced with opposition!
Sometimes, when you determine to do something good for God, you are surprised
to come across opposition to your good intentions. Nehemiah could not be
deterred, and neither should we be. As a young minister in the Church, I
planned a programme for the purpose of winning souls to the Kingdom with the
approval of my father-in-the-Lord. A senior pastor heard about it and picked a
quarrel with me. I was surprised because my expectation was commendation and
not condemnation. I could not understand how winning souls could become
sacrilegious. I therefore reported the matter to the General Superintendent,
but he asked me to go and beg the senior pastor so that the programme could
hold! I obeyed; though I did not know why I should do that except for the fact
that my father-in-the-Lord asked me to. I thank God I did.
Reading through the book of Nehemiah, you will
discover that Nehemiah’s strength was hidden in his prayer life. He prayed all
through to the God who gave him the vision to build, and he was strengthened
(Nehemiah 4:1-4). Jesus Christ also used the medium of prayer to overcome the
challenges of His assignment of saving the world (Luke 22:41-44). So, when you
are convinced of what the Lord has asked you to do, go ahead and pursue it with
all your strength, but do not leave prayer out of it. For those in opposition
to good things, there are lots of lessons for you in this story as well. Beware
of standing in opposition to what God does or wants to do, or else, you will
live to regret your actions. You should know that what you think should not
happen or will be impossible to achieve will happen, and will succeed as well.
Know also that when the day of celebration comes, you will not be part of it.
The story of the 24-hour miracle that terminated the famine in Samaria is one
to take note of (2 Kings 7:18-20). The man of God prophesied super-abundance
after a long time of famine in Samaria, but a powerful minister in the king’s
cabinet said it was not possible. He saw it happen but he did not partake of it
according to the word of the man of God. May this not be your portion in Jesus’
Name. Let us join hands to build our country. Let us cease from being
destructively critical of our political and economic system. Rather, let us
build our nation through prayers and we shall see and eat the good of the land
in Jesus’ Name.
PRAYER
POINT
Father, give me the strength to build your kingdom
on earth, and make me a partaker of the celebrations to follow.
BIBLE
IN ONE YEAR
Lamentations
3-5;
Psalm
64
Lord God, strenghten me, n help me to build for you, a kingdom here on. Earth..n be a partaker in the blessings, glory, to follow ...IJN
ReplyDeleteThank you gracious God for your word this morning,I pray Lord that you will strengthen me 2 build your kingdom here on earth,and make me a partaker of the celebration to follow.Amen
ReplyDeleteAm a. Partaker. www.toridey.com
ReplyDeleteMy almighty strengthen me 2 build for u in all way
ReplyDeleteLord strenghten me cos u're my strenght and my healer
ReplyDelete