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Rising To The Challenge ~ Nehemiah
"Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire." ~ Nehemiah 1:3
”If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it.” ~ Nehemiah 2:5 The life of Nehemiah is a tremendous example of hope and inspiration to each one of us facing a challenge. Nehemiah was a cupbearer to the King of Babylon. As part of his duties, he was required to test the food and wine to make sure it wasn’t poisoned. Obviously, Nehemiah had to be a man who enjoyed the unreserved confidence of the King. One day Nehemiah received the news from his brother that the city of Jerusalem and its inhabitants were in deep trouble and grave disgrace. The walls were broken down, and the gates had been burned with fire. The walls and gates provided protection for the people and to have them in disrepair not only meant that their safety was in jeopardy but it was also a cause of disgrace. Nehemiah had an option. He could have said, “Too bad but I have an important job to do here and I’m going to do it.” Or he could have asked God, “What do you want me to do?” He chose the latter. For days he mourned and fasted and prayed to God about the problem. And then he rose to the occasion. He felt God calling him to do something heroic—to rebuild the wall and gates of the city. He asked the Lord to grant him favor before the King that he might be allowed to go to accomplish this great feat. The King granted Nehemiah his wish and he set out for the city. He quickly found that the leaders and people had become immobilized and reconciled to this sad state of affairs. It took an outsider—Nehemiah—to assess the situation and to rally them to renewed efforts. Upon arrival, he cautiously and discreetly inspected the city’s fortifications. “Then I said to them, ‘You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.’ I also told them about the gracious hand of my God upon me and what the King had said to me. They replied, ‘Let us start rebuilding.’ So they began this good work.” (Nehemiah 2:17-18) Nehemiah rose to the occasion, and so did the people. But they faced stiff resistance from others who didn’t want to see Jerusalem made strong again. For one to “Rise to the Occasion” requires many things. Let’s look at several.
- AIM HIGH. “No man can rise above that which he aims.” (A.A. Hodge) If you set your sights low, that is most likely what you’ll obtain. So aim high! Fire above the mark you intend to hit. Nehemiah set his sights on rebuilding the wall and gates—nothing less.
- EVALUATE THE SITUATION. One key to success depends on knowing what it will take to succeed—what resources will be needed, how long it will take, etc. Nehemiah 2:11-13 states; “I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days, I set out during the night with a few men…by night I went out through the Valley Gate…examining the walls of Jerusalem.” Nehemiah did what he had to do to evaluate the situation.
- PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO DETAILS. Nehemiah was very exacting, systematic, and calculating in his examination of the wall and gates. He counted the cost. Benjamin Franklin wrote on this theme, “For the want of a nail, the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe, the horse was lost; for want of a horse, the rider was lost; for want of the rider, the battle was lost; for want of a battle, the kingdom was lost; all for the want of a horseshoe nail.” We must pay close attention to details.
- REALIZE THAT FAILURE IS ONLY AN ENDEAVOR TEMPORARILY OFF THE TRACK. How foolish it would be to abandon your car forever if you accidentally ran it off the road and into a ditch. Instead, you see that as a temporary failure—being off track. A tow truck pulls it out, repairs are made, and you get on with your travels. “Great things through great sacrifices are achieved and then they shine.” ~ Beaumont Nehemiah and his men were immediately met with opposition. His opponents mocked, ridiculed, manipulated, and plotted. They tried to throw Nehemiah and his people off track permanently. They didn’t succeed! In our own challenges, we must treat failures as stepping stones to further effort.
- GIVE IT YOUR ALL, WITH ALL YOUR HEART. “Character is not determined by a single act, but by habitual conduct.” ~ Theo L. Cuyler Nehemiah exhibited this characteristic. “So we rebuilt the wall till all of it reached half its height, for the people worked with all their heart.” (Nehemiah 4:6)
- FINISH THE JOB. “Resolve to perform what you ought; perform without fail what you promise.” ~ Ben Franklin “So the wall was completed…in 52 days.” (Nehemiah 6:15)
They did it! They got the job done—in less time than it takes most of us to play a season. Verse 6:16 continues, “And it came about when all our enemies heard of it, and all the nations surrounding us saw it, they lost their confidence; for they recognized that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God!” QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION AND REFLECTION:
- What’s one of the biggest challenges you’re facing right now? What’s your goal in this situation? What’s your target?
- What’s the situation? What resources will be needed to meet this challenge? How much time do you think this one will take? How prepared are you for this? Are you missing any details? Look again.
- Have you experienced any failure at this point in this challenge? How do you want to view this failure?
- Are you giving it your all? What more could you do?
- How much do you want to finish the job?
- What do you want to tell God about this challenge and how you’re feeling?
- What’s the one greatest lesson Nehemiah has taught you? (If you have the time, read the whole book of Nehemiah—it’s not too long).
Reprinted with permission from "Run To Win" by Mike Rohrbach & Denny Rydberg, copyright 1993. To obtain a copy, contact the Run To Win office at (425) 776-2946 or info@runtowin.org. View past chapel messages in the Chapel Archive.
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