GOD OUR PERSONAL TRAINER
May 14
The Habit of Enjoying Adversity
“… that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body” (2 Corinthians 4:10).
We have to develop godly habits to express what God’s grace has done in us. It is not just a question of being saved from hell, but of being saved so that “the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our body.” And it is adversity that makes us exhibit His life in our mortal flesh. Is my life exhibiting the essence of the sweetness of the Son of God, or just the basic irritation of “myself” that I would have apart from Him? The only thing that will enable me to enjoy adversity is the acute sense of eagerness of allowing the life of the Son of God to evidence itself in me. No matter how difficult something may be, I must say, “Lord, I am delighted to obey You in this.” Instantly, the Son of God will move to the forefront of my life, and will manifest in my body that which glorifies Him.
You must not debate. The moment you obey the light of God, His Son shines through you in that very adversity; but if you debate with God, you grieve His Spirit (see Ephesians 4:30). You must keep yourself in the proper condition to allow the life of the Son of God to be manifested in you, and you cannot keep yourself fit if you give way to self-pity. Our circumstances are the means God uses to exhibit just how wonderfully perfect and extraordinarily pure His Son is. Discovering a new way of manifesting the Son of God should make our heart beat with renewed excitement. It is one thing to choose adversity, and quite another to enter into adversity through the orchestrating of our circumstances by God’s sovereignty. And if God puts you into adversity, He is adequately sufficient to “supply all your need” (Philippians 4:19).
Keep your soul properly conditioned to manifest the life of the Son of God. Never live on your memories of past experiences, but let the Word of God always be living and active in you.
Nehemiah’s reaction to the news about Jerusalem and its people (4)
a. Nehemiah’s immediate reaction is extreme. He doesn’t just feel bad for Jerusalem and its people; right away, there is no strength in his legs (I sat down), and he begins to weep, and mourn.
b. God is going to use Nehemiah to do something about this situation; but first, God must do something in Nehemiah. Any great work of God begins with God doing a great work in somebody.
i. God prepared this long ago, with Nehemiah’s important position in Persia, with a heart curious about the welfare of Jerusalem and its people; now, with a heart that breaks over their needy state.
ii. God saw the need in heaven, but little would be done until the right man also felt the need—and now, God is going to do something great to meet that need through Nehemiah.
iii. But there is no way Nehemiah can do this alone. He must be a leader—one who influences other people—to get this job done. Nehemiah is a book all about leadership—something we obviously need today.
iv. Since leadership is influence, leadership applies to everyone. Everyone has an area of leadership. You are a leader; are you a good leader or a bad leader?
v. Leaders must prepare themselves for difficult work. It won’t be easy. Deal with it! “There is no winning without warfare; there is no opportunity without opposition; there is no victory without vigilance. For when ever the people of God say, ‘Let us arise and build,’ Satan says, ‘Let me arise and oppose.’ ” (Redpath).
vi. Leaders must have a big vision, and Nehemiah had one. “Through me, God is going to correct a problem that’s been around a hundred and fifty years. Through me, God is going to do something that was completely shot down before.” Is your vision—your goal—big enough?
c. Nehemiah’s reaction went beyond an immediate emotion; for many days he mourned, and he was fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Many times a concern will come over us in a flush, and then quickly pass. But if it is from the Lord, it will abide, and grow in us, and the burden will remain till it is done.
i. We should note as well what Nehemiah did not do: he did not complain, whine, or “see who could fix this problem.” He immediately did what he knew he could do—pray, and intensely seek God in this situation.
d. Nehemiah also had a clear understanding of Whom he was fasting and praying towards: the God of heaven. There are many “gods” people trust in; but only the God of heaven can really meet our needs.
B. Nehemiah’s prayer [1:5–11]
1. Prayer is essential to leadership; if your vision is so big that only God can accomplish it, then you obviously must pray. If prayer isn’t absolutely necessary to accomplish your vision, your goal isn’t big enough
a. It appears that Nehemiah prayed for four months before he did anything. Later, when the work of rebuilding the walls actually begins, it only takes 52 days to finish the job. But that 52-day project had a four-month foundation of prayer.
b. Nehemiah took his pain and stress to God in prayer—and seemingly, was able to leave it there. Prayer will relieve your stress. You may be trying to relieve stress through entertainment, but all that does is divert your attention. Entertainment doesn’t give any solutions to stress. Prayer will give you strength; when you wait on the Lord in prayer, He will renew your strength (Isaiah 40:31).
2. Nehemiah comes to God in humility (5–7)
a. Humility begins by simply understanding there is a God enthroned in the heavens, and I am not Him! Nehemiah recognizes exactly who God is: LORD God of heaven … great and awesome God … who keep Your covenant … and mercy … with those You love.
b. Humility also understands my complete dependence on God. When Nehemiah desperately asked God to hear the prayer of Your servant (let Your ear be attentive … Your eyes open), it reflected his complete dependence on the LORD. Only God could help, and if God will only hear, Nehemiah knew He would help!
i. God will allow you to be fruitless to expose your need for total dependence.
c. Humility will also confess sin openly: confess the sins … which we have sinned against You. Both my father’s house and I have sinned. Nehemiah plainly and simply confesses sin, without any attempt at excuse.
i. God save us from excusing ourselves in the confession of sin! May we never say, “Lord, if I sinned …” or “Lord, I’m sorry, but You know how hard it was …” or other such nonsense. We can find great freedom in open, honest confession, without any attempt at excuse or wondering “if” I sinned or not.
d. Humility identifies with the needy. Obviously, Nehemiah was a godly man; but he openly and passionately puts himself with his father’s house, and prays with using “we” instead of “they.”
i. “You never lighten the load unless first you have felt the pressure in your own soul. You are never used of God to bring blessing until God has opened your eyes and made you see things as they are.” (Redpath).
Nehemiah comes to God looking to God’s promises (8–10)
a. Remember: what a powerful way to come to God! To ask Him to remember His promises! Nehemiah is saying, “LORD, You made a promise to Moses and this nation, I ask you now to make good on it!” (Nehemiah is quoting from both Leviticus 26 and Deuteronomy 30).
i. This, no doubt, is the secret to great power in prayer: to plead the promises of God. We may be a bit annoyed when one of our children comes to us saying “Daddy, you promised”; but our Father in heaven delights in it—and often demands it before prayer becomes effective.
ii. God will not open His storehouse until we open our mouths in asking Him to perform His promises!
b. If you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them: Nehemiah quotes a conditional promise. The condition was returning to God, and keeping His commandments. But how could he know the nation was keeping these conditions? He really couldn’t; but he knew that he was keeping them, and because he had identified himself with the nation in their sin, the nation could identify itself with Nehemiah in his godly fulfillment of these conditions.