Sunday 13 May 2018

May 13: Nehemiah 4:7-9

Key Verse: Nehemiah 4:9
But we prayed to our God and posted a guard day and night to meet this threat.

Devotion:
What do you do when the people around you work against you as a Christian? Do you do what Peter did and deny being a part of Christ’s church, or do you stand and fight? It is very easy to say “oh, I’ll fight all the way” but when we actually face up to the very real threat, many of us are going to give in just as Peter did. Don’t panic! God knows your heart and He knows the things you have to face!

But, that does not mean we roll over and give in every time because the people around will see us doing that and they will doubt our faith, our commitment and our truthfulness as well. God wants us to stand firm and call on His name for the strength and the guidance. When He answers, though, it may not be exactly what we hoped for or what we asked for. God has a habit of giving us what we need and not what we think is good for us!

Sometimes the answer coming back from God is going to be for us to dig in and hold the line; that is where our strength alone will fail, but His strength can carry us through. Sometimes the answer is going to be something we do not like and we may doubt things ourselves; but he does know what is best for us!

Doing what God wants is going to be an act of faith in itself many times because we may not see the logic in fighting a battle when we cannot see any way of winning; He has already won the war, but it’s these pesky battles and skirmishes which we have to face up to, proving we are part of His glorious army! Don’t panic if you don’t like the front line – they need support and prayers to keep going, which means a whole lot of people in the background doing work which is not always seen by people. Keep going, keep praying and keep doing what God has called you to do – it is important!

Points to Ponder:
Do you look for thanks for the work you do?

Or do you give thank for the work you can do?