I hope you want to be one. Badly enough to pick up the Sword (of the Spirit) when the persecution comes. Badly enough to cry out to God and then pick up His tools and go at it again. Badly enough to multi-task for Him. Badly enough to face yours own Sanballots and Tobiahs (Nehemiah 2). I pray that my courage will not fail in the face of persecution. I want to build for my children and grandchildren. For those who are Digging Deep (https://www.facebook.com/groups/282349391779769/) this month, Nehemiah is the man of the hour. He steps right out of the sacred pages and into the hearts of God’s people today…in their political views, in their sin-challenged families and in their weary congregations. Nehemiah is an affront to apathy and cowardice and an appeal to steadfastness and courage in a day when Christians are repelled as we view the moral and spiritual landscape about us. To be repelled is not enough, though. We have to repeal…. I mean, we have to do everything within our power to restore, one precious soul at a time, respect for the Word of God and sanctification for His purposes in whatever arenas of influence we have.
I challenge you to ingest Nehemiah in the remaining days of this month. Join us on the podcast (http://livestream.com/whcoc/for-women) next Tuesday night for some ideas about what we can personally do in a day when Christians are mocked, persecuted and are, more and more, finding themselves targets of litigation for the defense of religious freedoms and/or beliefs.
Appreciation goes to Polishing the Pulpit (http://polishingthepulpit.com) as I recommend today, for your listening, this lesson which finds its basis in the great book of Nehemiah. Specifically, thanks to Allen Webster and Grat Tucker for help in sharing this lesson and to my friend, Tennessee State Representative Sheila Butt, for her study and presentation.
https://www.dropbox.com/s/2siobcrh8ehv1px/075%20Butt%2C%20Sheila%20-%20Finding%20Peace%20in%20Anxious%20Times-auphonic.mp3?dl=0
