"But spend some time walking
in the workshop of the heavens,
seeing what God has done,
and watch how your prayers are energized."
Max Lucado
(The Great House of God)
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"Our enemies were trying to scare us, thinking, "They will get too weak to work. Then the wall will not be finished." But I prayed, "God, make me strong." (Nehemiah 6:9)
READ Nehemiah 6:1-7:73
SITUATION Despite much opposition from Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem. Nehemiah and the Israelites finished the wall of Jerusalem.
OBSERVATION Satan tries to discourage us. But we can survive setbacks if we stay focused and fulfill God's purposes.
INSPIRATION An altogether different person was the man who was my seatmate on a flight to St. Louis...
"I happen to be facing a crisis at this time," when my seatmate. "Just what it is, is irrelevant, but to get ready for it my mind must be working at maximum, so I follow a procedure. First, I sharpen my mind by reading (the Bible)...
"Then I affirm God's presence. I remind myself that the Lord is with me, for He said: "I am with you always." I spend a moment sensing and feeling the Lord's actual presence.... Next, I pray that my decisions will be right.
"Having completed those procedures. I then practice one of the wisest bits of advice in the Bible. Know what that is?
"You tell me," I urged.
"Having done all, to stand.' When you done all you can do, what more can you do? Just put everything confidently into God's hands. He will bring it out OK." (From The Positive Power of Jesus Christ by Norman Vincent Peale)
APPLICATION What crises threaten to discourage you? The next time you face a crisis, imitate the person who discovered how to stay focused on God; read, mediate, pray, act, and wait.
EXPLORATION Examples of Faith -- Job 13:15; 19:25; Psalm 13:5; Daniel 3:6-7:23; Matthew 9:18-25; Luke 7:6-50; Romans 4:18-24; Hebrews 11
The Devotional Bible - Experiencing the Heart of Jesus, Max Lucado General Editor, New Century Version, Thomas Nelson Publishers
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