Tough Job Ahead
Nehemiah 2:1-10
Larry Walters, at the time, 33-years old decided to see his neighborhood
from a new perspective. So, he went down to
the local army surplus store and bought 45 used weather balloons.
That afternoon he strapped himself into a lawn chair, to which several of
his friends tied the now helium-filled used weather balloons. He took with him,
something to drink, a peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich, and a BB gun, figuring
he could shoot the balloons one at a time when he was ready to land.
Walters, who assumed the balloons would lift him about 100 feet in the air, was
caught off guard when the chair soared more than 11,000 feet into the sky--smack
into the middle of the air traffic pattern at Los Angeles International Airport.
Because he was too frightened to shoot any of the balloons, he stayed airborne
for more than two hours, and forced the airport to shut down its runways for
much of the afternoon.
Soon after he was safely grounded and cited by the police, reporters asked him
three questions:
1) "Were you scared? "Yes." 2)"Would you do it again? "No.3) "Why did you do it?" "Because you can’t just sit there,
One thing about it, if you just sit there, life will
pass you by.
You can let life pass you
by, NEHEMIAH was in a great place to just let the troubles of the world pass him
by.
You can watch LIFE, and
the world just go on by, or become a
part of it.
TOO often we get busy with
life or we get lazy, THEN we miss being able to have an affect, make a
difference or even FACE what life brings along.
Then when
we want to be a part of life, we don’t know where to begin.
There was an absent-minded
professor who became so absorbed in his work he
forgot the simplest details. One
morning his wife said, "Now Henry, remember, we are moving today. Here,
I’m putting this note in your pocket. Don’t forget." The day passed by
& the man came home to his house. He entered the front door, & found the
place empty. Distraught, he walked out to the curb & sat down. A young boy
walked up to him, & the man asked him, "Little boy, do you know the
people who used to live here?" The boy replied, "Sure, Dad, mother told me you’d forget."
a) You can
try to fly above problems and let them float by,
b) Or You
can sit on the curb and stew over
your problems,
You
can try, in doing so Life and Progress will pass you by.
c) OR you
can face them.
FACING life OR problems
all require adjustments or better known as
CHANGE can be difficult,
it can be a tough job to face the future,
Some of you know it’s
coming, some are in the middle and some just done,
it
can be a tough job! Let’s look at
5 ways we can face the tough jobs ahead.
Our first point encourages us to…..
1. Be prepared by THINKING AHEAD
A. Nehemiah has done his homework.
1. He has been praying for 4 months.
2. He’s been planning and preparing for this meeting
with the king.
B. Some think “It’s not really that important to be prepared?
1. Live life one moment at a time. Be spontaneous and fun,
not boring and predictable, or
planning your life instead of living it!"
2.
Prepared or not, we can only live life one moment at a time,
Pro 16:9
In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.
C. Remember that God plans ahead.
Jeremiah 29:11 For I know the plans I have for you,"
declares the Lord, "plans to
prosper you and not to harm you,
plans to give you hope and a
future.
1Cor. 14:33, 40 For
God is not a God of disorder but of peace everything should be done in a fitting
and orderly way.
D. Wise people
plan ahead.
Pro 14:8 [Living Bible] The
wise man looks ahead. The fool attempts to fool
Howard
Hendricks "Nothing is more profitable than serious thinking,and nothing is
more demanding."
If you take time to think ahead, you’ll do a much better
job at the next point
2.Be prepared to take advantage of OPPORTUNITIES
2:1-2
A. God OPENS DOORS.
1. If your listening to the Lord, & looking for the
open door, & listening to who-ever is involved, YOU CAN’T MISS IT!!!!
2. One-on-one conversations with the king were rare.
B. Opportunity
is often missed for it’s discrete appearance.
1. Most people don’t see opportunity
because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. -- Thomas A. Edison.
We must be ready and take advantage of opportunity God brings.
1Pe 3:15 But
in your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to
everyone who asks you
to give the
reason for the hope that you have.
2.
Nehemiah was ready to see and face the situation because he:
a)
recognized needs b)
took them to God c)
responded
with action
James 4:3 When
you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may
spend what you get
on your pleasures.
Too often our prayers are attempts to get something for our
own benefit. Nehemiah’s prayer was a long-term investment
for the purposes of God
It’s natural for
us to be afraid, especially at the uncertainty of the future. But our next point
encourages us to….
3. Be prepared to act in spite of your FEARS.
Neh 2:2
A. Nehemiah was risking his life here.
1. In those days there was a law prohibiting anyone to be sad
in the king’s presence. It was a crime punishable by death.
2.
In king’s presence no one was allowed to be sad or to complain.
To do that would be a bad
reflection on the king who was responsible for the goodwill of the kingdom.
Anyone want this law in your home?
school? or at work?
B. How does
your life reflect King Jesus?
A dad led his
family in prayer before breakfast daily, thanking God for what He provided. After
he said "Amen," his
habit was grumbling about hard times, sometimes about food, how it was cooked,
& more. His little daughter listened with unusual attention one day &
interrupt, "Daddy
did God hear your prayer?"
"Certainly," he responded with confidence." "Did
He hear you about the bacon and coffee?" "Yes"
he replied "Then, Daddy which one did God believe?"
1. We Christians should look at what our actions
represent.
John 10:10 I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.
too often the only thing we’re full of is
sadness or complaints.
2.
Either we believe God and Trust Him to provide. OR
C. Nehemiah’s faith was greater than his fear.
He did right, in spite of his fear because he believed God’s promises.
Often
it’s a poor choice to base our actions on our feelings.
do your actions match up with your prayers?
Get that part right and the next step comes a little easier…...
4. Be prepared to COMMUNICATE DETAILS.
Neh. 2:4-6 Then the king asked me, “What is your request?”
A. Talk about a Tough Job.
1. Your sad before the King
2.
Could result in Death.
3.
King asks “What’s wrong?”
4.
Do you give it to him, nicely or blunt?
B. The King responds: “What is your request?”
1.
Now that’s an opportunity! It’s not often that a king asks you,
“What
do you want?" Nehemiah was ready to respond.
2.
Nehemiah had prayed and thought it out
and
was now prepared to communicate
details to the king.
a) What’s
the goal?
b)
How long
will it take?
c)
What’s
needed to do the job?
3.
Before communicating details to the king, Nehemiah prays again.
Taking on
a large task Neh. knew it required lots of prayer & preparation
ARE
YOU READY TO ASK GOD FOR YOUR NEEDS, BIG NEEDS?
5. Be prepared for POSSIBLE PROBLEMS
Neh. 2:7-10
A. Nehemiah
knew he would face opposition from his enemies,
1. He asked the king for letters of permission from the king to allow him to
pass through the various provinces.
2. He asked for a letter to Asaph, the man in charge of the kings forest. 3. He also knew he would need written authority.
B. We have an
enemy.
1.
We are in an occupied land.
2.
We need to build.
3.
We need to protect people.
4.
We have an enemy.
1Pe 5:8
Be sober! Be on the alert! Your
adversary the Devil is prowling around like a roaring
lion, looking for anyone he can devour. 9 Resist him, firm in the faith, knowing
that the same sufferings are being experienced by your brothers in the world.
C. Nehemiah asked for something big from the king.
There’s
a story a man who went to Alexander the Great and asked for some
financial
help. Alexander told the man to go to his treasurer & ask for whatever he
needed. A little later, the treasurer went to Alexander and told him he was
hesitant to give the man what he asked for because he asked for an enormous
amount. Alexander replied, “Give him what he asks for, he has treated me like
a KING in his asking, and I shall be like a king in my giving.”
1.
Do we have great FAITH or little faith.
What
a tragedy if Nehemiah had not prepared for opportunity!
2.
Do we treat GOD, as the God who can do all things?
We
have the privilege of being part of what God is doing.
I
don’t know if Nehemiah knew all the ramifications of his actions. Truth is,
none of us know all of what God is up to.
D. Nehemiah counted the Cost of Success.
Four Principles on
preparation that brings success.
1.
Changing hearts is God’s specialty Neh.
heart, the heart of people.
2.
Praying & waiting go hand in hand.
3. Faith
is not a synonym for disorder or
substitute for careful planning
4.
Opposition is to be expected when God’s will is carried out
Well done is better than
well said. Benjamin
Franklin
We
have to be committed to doing God’s will no matter what it costs us, and stay
committed no matter what unexpected things might come up.