I'm Doing a Great Work: Staying Focused in Opposition

``And if you're not yet sold about the example of Nehemiah and Nehemiah six, consider Jesus who came to the earth at Christmas on a mission and despite the temptation, despite the distractions, nothing stopped him. Fear didn't overwhelm him though he felt it. Enemies didn't confine him, though they tried. And when the enemy thought they had won by nailing him to a cross, God took one death and one resurrection and brought many, millions more, because God does more. Jesus was faithful. He was doing a great work to do what his father sent him to do, and he invites us to participate in the things he calls us to. [00:58:49] (48 seconds)  #JesusDidTheWork

In Ephesians six, when we talk about spiritual warfare, God's word is identified as a sword because it is a weapon against the lies and the deceit of your enemy. If Nehemiah hadn't known what God had said about going into the temple, he might have ended up dead because it sounded good, but he knew. He knew. No. That's that's not the truth. [00:50:00] (20 seconds)  #WordIsYourSword

I'm doing what God called me to do. And he's the one who has a final say, and he's the one that knows the end from the beginning. And so I'm not gonna get distracted by this thing. I recognize the tactic that it is, and no, I'm not pointing to you people over here. We're talking about the enemy. Alright? I'm gonna keep going on what it is that God has called me to do. I'm doing a great work here. [00:45:25] (21 seconds)  #CalledToKeepGoing

You see, when you digest God's word, you don't have, like, fireworks go off every time you read the Bible. Yes. Sometimes you read something and and it just lands, and and there's they can be a eureka moment. I've had plenty of those. But more often than not, you are just digesting the truth and you are filing it away as ammunition against the future lie that the enemy might bring your way. But if you don't have a reservoir of the truth in your heart and in your life, then you have a really hard time when the when the lie comes your way distinguishing between the truth and the lie. [00:50:20] (40 seconds)  #FeedOnScripture

Nehemiah didn't finish this wall because opposition disappeared. He he didn't, you know, complete this thing because it was easy and the enemy stopped. In fact, the verses at the end of this chapter show us that the enemy keeps on going. He finished because when distraction came, when fear spoke, when lies sounded true, he remembered my number one priority in life in response to God's grace is to just do what he gave me to do and trust him with the fruit and the rest. [00:57:02] (33 seconds)  #FinishDespiteOpposition

When you set yourself to do what God calls you to do, you gotta get really adept at recognizing the enemy's tactics. Like realizing, that's not of God, that is of the enemy. Whenever fear is the response, it can't be of God. Nehemiah knew the kinds of things that the enemy was trying to do. He's already tried distraction. Now the enemy is trying to appeal to his pride, you need to recognize those are his tactics still today. [00:42:36] (32 seconds)  #RecognizeEnemyTactics

Nothing the enemy tempts you with is as great as doing what God gives you to do. You see those silly things on social media of, would you rather take a million dollars today or $20,000 a day for life? And then you wonder how people ever passed math class, you know? And that's from somebody who went to Bible college. You just get really concerned for society. The temptation to temporary windfall or immediate windfall is so alluring. It is the same temptation that our enemy gives us. [00:37:32] (36 seconds)  #ResistQuickRiches

especially when Nehemiah think about how he's spending his days. He spends his days with rocks, mortar, hand tools, and maybe the worst of all, people. You know his back hurt. You know he was tired. You know he was worn out and tired of the drama and tired of the repetition. I mean, every day, how do you build a wall like that? You put another rock on it and another one and another one and another one. Like, that's what he did day after day after day. [00:38:53] (30 seconds)  #DailyFaithfulWork