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December 27, 2023
My beloved child history has a way of repeating itself. Pay attention! Nehemiah had to deal with Sanballat who was very angry when he discovered we were rebuilding the wall. Today you are dealing with the same distractions. I have a plan and a purpose but the enemy who can do nothing more than roar loudly and throw fiery darts at you to distract you from keeping My plan from being fulfilled. Distracters mock, torment and do everything possible to interfere in the work of the Kingdom. That’s what they did to the Jews saying, ‘What does this poor feeble bunch of Jews think they are doing? (Nehemiah 4:1-2)
As soon as the wall began going up, Sanballat heard about it – he knew the restoration of Jerusalem would bring a major shift in business and political power. Sanballat had invested interest in the city remaining in despair, so he focused on distracting them. He first tried to distract them by ridiculing, mocking, and spreading false accusations about them. (Nehemiah 4:3-5) When that didn’t work, he changed his strategies and began using tactics of fear, entrapment, and political manipulation. (Nehemiah 4:6-8)
The enemy comes to distract you to cause you to lose your focus. They remained focused and prayed to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob and guarded the city day and night to protect themselves. (Nehemiah 4:9) Nehemiah looked the situation over and called the men and women together and said, ‘Don’t be afraid of the enemy, remember the Lord who is great and glorious – when the enemy heard of our plans God frustrated them! (Nehemiah 4:14-18) God will do the same for you! There was a vast difference between Nehemiah and Sanballat. Nehemiah’s Leadership and character countered every assault on Sanballat motivated his godly vision to be completed. We can learn valuable lessons from studying Sanballat’s assaults, threats, and wicked schemes:
Has the enemy falsely accused you? Pray and commit what you are doing to the Lord, stay focused on the vision and He will frustrate the plans of the enemy!
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