Day Five

"Don't be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome and fight with your brothers, your sons, and your daughters, your wives and your homes." Nehemiah 4:14
The context of this passage is Nehemiah talking to the workers who are rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem after they returned from exile. It was not going to be a simple task as is usually the case when God calls us to do something. If you read the beginning of chapter 4 the workers face opposition not unlike what we face today.
They had the wall half way built and their enemies saw they were making progress and they were angry and began plotting (v7). Not unlike our enemy. He isn't just annoyed when we grow closer to what we are called to be. He gets angry. The builders response was to pray and post a guard day and night. As New Testament believers Paul translates this to us. "Do not be anxious about anything but in everything by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)
In the next verses the laborers face their own frustration, doubt and weariness. They know their enemies are watching and waiting. The Jews who lived near by felt it was their duty to tell them what an impossible task they faced.
Nehemiah responds by placing guards against the lowest places, the places most vulnerable to attack. In the face of our own self doubt about our call, our weariness, our knowledge of the enemy's desire to destroy us and our fellow believers discouraging us, we need know what areas in our walls are most vulnerable to attack. I don't know what that is for you but for me it is worrying about what others are thinking about me. I can make up all kinds of lies in my head about what someone else is thinking about me or saying about me. These lies can paralyze me into inaction pretty quickly. My guard for this is my knowledge of Christ's unconditional love and acceptance of me just the way I am, the way He made me. My sword is the word of God, specifically, "And I pray that you being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ and to know that this love surpasses knowledge-that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God."
Nehemiah also tells them to not be afraid, remember the Lord, and fight. He called them to fight specifically for their families. Don't let discouragement, fear, isolation, cause you to give up. Even if you think you can't do it, you need to fight for your family. Maybe it is your family that is in jeopardy. If you ever needed to hear a word it is this one. Fight. Fight for your family. Fight because your family needs you too. Don't give up. Your family is so valuable to God he made the family before he made the church. I don't know how many other ways to say it. Get whatever help you need and fight. I can tell you from experience I know it's not easy but it's necessary. I am not going to go all Proverbs 31 on you (no one can measure up to that!) I am just going to say please don't give up.
Abba, Father, we are your children, part of your family. And just as a mother could not forget her own child, you can not forget us. You hold us tight in the palm of your hand. Give us what we need to continue, to perservere toward what it is you have in store for us. Forgive us for when we forget that and want to give up. We fix our eyes on You, the Author and Perfector of our faith.
Amen