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INTRO
INTRO
HAVE YOU EVER STARTED SOMETHING AND REALISED HALF WAY THROUGH THE PROJECT THAT YOU HAVE NOT THOUGHT IT THROUGH PROPERLY AND HAD TO GO BACK TO SQUARE ONE AND START OVER, OR ENDED UP DOING DOUBLE THE WORK BECAUSE OF LACK OF PLANNING?
Planning is a crucial aspect of any successful endeavor.
Whether it's a personal project or a business venture, having a well-thought-out plan can make all the difference in achieving your goals.
Planning allows you to identify potential obstacles and find ways to overcome them, set realistic deadlines, and allocate resources effectively.
Without planning, you may find yourself lost, overwhelmed, and unsure of how to proceed.
By taking the time to plan, you can increase your chances of success and save yourself time, money, and headaches in the long run.
LAST YEAR WE AS A CHURCH IN OAKVILLE TALKED ABOUT EVIDENCE, THE EVIDENCE OF OUR FAITH. AND THIS YEAR WE ARE LOOKING AT PROGRESS.
NOW WHEN YOU LOOK BACK AT ANYTHING THAT YOU HAVE DONE, YOU NEED TO SEE SOME PROGRESS BEING MADE. OTHERWISE YOU ARE STANDING STILL.
OR EVEN REGRESSING.
WE TALKED ABOUT PLANNING THE DESTINATION WHICH TOOK US THROUGH ROMANS 12-13
WE TALKED ABOUT:
RENEWING YOUR MIND
KNOWING THAT WE JOURNEY THIS ROAD TOGETHER
GET OUR EMOTIONS IN ORDER TO LOVE WHAT IS GOOD AND NOT WHAT IS EVIL
UNDERSTANDING THE FREEDOM THAT COMES FROM GRACE. LOVE WINS OVER ALL THINGS.
WE ALSO LOOKED AT HOW EVERYTHING HAS AN ORDER AND ORDER IS WHAT HELPS US TO MOVE FORWARD.
WE THEN MOVED TO THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH AND WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT THE IMPORTANCE OF MAPPING THINGS OUT.
WE SEE THAT NEHEMIAH HAD A BURDEN FOR THE EXILED JEWS AND THE REMNANT THAT WAS LEFT BEHIND IN JERUSALEM WHEN THEY WERE TAKEN CAPTIVE.
HE PRAYED TO GOD FOR AN OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE.
LETS TAKE A LOOK AT WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE:
The walls are brokenthe gates are destroyed and the people are in Great distress THESE ARE WORDS FOUND IN THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE BOOK OF NEHEMIAH IN THE BIBLE - IN FACT YOU WILL FIND THEM IN THE FIRST THREE VERSES.
NEHEMIAHS HEART IS BROKEN FOR HIS PEOPLE. AND HE BREAKS DOWN AND WEEPS AND FASTS AND PRAYS FOR DAYS.
WHEN WE SEE THINGS FALLING APART AROUND US, WHAT ACTION DO WE TAKE, DOES IT BREAK YOUR HEART?
DO WE JUST SHRUG AND SAY OH WELL THAT IS HOW IT IS.
NEHEMIAH REALISED THAT GOD HAD GIVEN HIM A BURDEN FOR THE PEOPLE AND THAT MEANT HE HAD TO TAKE ACTION.
FIRST HE PRAYED AND FASTED BEFORE THE LORD.
WHEN WE BRING OUR BURDENS TO GOD HE HELPS US TO CARRY THEM.
NOW I KNOW YOU THINK I AM CONTRADICTING MYSELF BECAUSE I SAID GOD GAVE NEHEMIAH A BURDEN FOR THE PEOPLE.
BUT YOU SEE WHEN GOD GIVES US A BURDEN, HE KNOWS WE WILL GET THINGS DONE. HE HAS A PLAN AND HE NEEDS US TO GET ON IT.
NEHEMIAH ACTUALLY COUNTED THE COST AND TOOK THE TIME TO PLAN ACCORDINGLY.
NOW IT MEANT THAT SOMETHINGS HAD TO CHANGE AND ALSO IT WOULD TAKE MORE THAN THE EYE COULD SEE TO GET THINGS BACK UP AND RUNNING FOR JERUSALEM.
FOUR MONTHS AFTER THE INTIAL CONTACT FROM HIS BROTHER NEHEMIAH WAS BEFORE THE KING AND THE KING NOTICED THAT NEHEMIAH WAS NOT HIMSELF.
YOU HAVE TO UNDERSTAND THAT THIS WAS VERY RISKY FOR HIM TO SHOW HIS EMOTIONS, IT COULD BE READ THAT HE WAS UNHAPPY WITH THE KING.
THE KING NOTICES THAT HE IS “SAD OF HEART” - ARTAXERXES’S FATHER WAS KILLED BY ONE OF THE COURTIERS, SO WE WOULD HAVE HAD A BIT OF A PARANOID KING HERE. PLUS THE KING HAD ALREADY BEEN PERSUADED BY HIS OWN PEOPLE TO STOP THE RESTORATION PROCESS OF JERUSALEM.
BUT NEHEMIAH USES WISDOM HERE, I BELEIVE THIS WISDOM CAME FROM NON OTHER THAN GOD.
WE KNOW NEHEMIAH HAD A CLOSE RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD
HE RESPONDED TO THE BURDEN
WHY WOULD HE NOT USE WISDOM WHEN DEALING WITH VOLATILE PEOPLE.
HE TELLS THE KING THAT HE WANTS TO GO AND REBUILD THE PLACE WHERE HIS ANCESTORS ARE FROM
3 I said to the king, “Let the king live forever! Why should not my face be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ graves, lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
LETS LOOK AT THE SCRIPTURE FOR TODAY:
6 And the king said to me (the queen sitting beside him), “How long will you be gone, and when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me when I had given him a time.
7 And I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may let me pass through until I come to Judah,
8 and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, that he may give me timber to make beams for the gates of the fortress of the temple, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy.” And the king granted me what I asked, for the good hand of my God was upon me.
9 Then I came to the governors of the province Beyond the River and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
V 6 - NEHEMIAH HAD A TIMELINE. - FORETHOUGHT
HE ASKED THE KING FOR ALL THE STUFF NEEDED
28 For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?
29 Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him,
HE NEEDED VISAS
HE NEEDED SUPPLIES FROM HOME DEPOT
Nehemiah knew the name of the man in charge of the king’s forest near Jerusalem may indicate that he had done some careful research
Though Nehemiah had worked diligently to prepare himself for the time when he would have opportunity to share his burden with the king, and though he demonstrated unusual wisdom in responding to the king’s questions, he knew that ultimately his success depended on God’s help. So he wrote that the king’s granting of his requests was because God’s gracious hand … was upon him (cf. v. 18; Ezra 7:6, 9, 28; 8:18, 22, 31).
GODS HAND WAS ON NEHEMIAH THAT HE CAUSED THE KING TO BE FAVOURABLE TOWARDS NEHEMIAH.
WHAT DO THEY NEED TO KNOW
WHAT DO THEY NEED TO KNOW
PRAYER IS THE FOUNDATION OF ALL OUR PLANS
21 You can make many plans, but the Lord’s purpose will prevail.
WHEN WE INCLUDE GOD IN THE PLAN HIS PURPOSE WILL PREVAIL - HE WILL SUPPLY THE NEEDS, DOWN TO THE LAST DETAIL.
WHAT DO THEY NEED TO DO?
WHAT DO THEY NEED TO DO?
GO BACK TO SEEKING GODS GUIDANCE IN ALL WE DO.
WHEN WE SPEND TIME WITH GOD ON THE BACK END THE FRONT END WILL BECOME SECOND NATURE.
SOME DECISIONS WILL BE ANSWERED BY A MERE WORD - HELP GOD
OTHERS WILL REQUIRE CAREFUL CONSIDERATION. - A LONGER TIME OF PRAYER AND SEEKING GOD.
WHEN WE DO NOT CONSIDER GOD IN ALL OF WHAT WE DO THEN WE WILL NEED TO LIVE BY THE CHOICES WE MAKE