My heart is very burdened for the people of Ukraine. As I watch the war accounts, my heart breaks for those who, at no apparent fault of their own, are in danger of losing their homeland, their homes, and many are losing their lives as well. I, like most of you, am inspired by the picture of the grandmother who is learning to fire a gun at the age of 79. Why! She replied, “I am willing to give up my life so my grandchildren can live in liberty!” I was so moved that I turned to Pastor Joane and asked what she would think about me going to Ukraine to fight for the people’s freedom. She replied, “I will go with you!”
Yes, I learned how to fight in the Army, and No, Pastor Joane just recently learned how to fire a gun with great precision. Maybe we can find another way to help! And, I believe I have discovered the answer! Influence makes the difference between a common person and one who changes things. President Harry Truman said, “A leader is a person who has the ability to get others to don what they don’t want to do, and like it!” Field Marshall Montgomery wrote, “The capacity and will to rally men and women to a common purpose, and the character which inspires confidence, is influence.” There is only one method that moves people always in the right way. Hudson Taylor put it in words, “It is possible to move men through God, by prayer alone!”
I am beginning a series of messages from the Old Testament Book of Nehemiah from which I am getting my inspiration today. Anyone interested in this in-depth study are welcomed to the Chapel. I will be preaching from this Book for at least fifteen weeks.
If there is anyone in history that had little chance of being a person of influence, it was Nehemiah. He was born a slave. His parents were slaves. His grandparents were slaves. He had no opportunity to advance, because he was a slave to a foreign government. His nation had turned away from God and had been sent into “time out” by God under the rulership of the Babylonians, led by King Nebuchadenezzar. That empire fell to the Persians under King Artaxerzxes. Nebuchadnezzar allowed a group of the Jews to return to their homeland under the leadership of Zerubbabel. Thirteen years before Nehemiah, Artaxerxes had allowed Ezra to lead the people to revive their “dry bones” and rebuild the Temple.
Nehemiah served as the Cup Bearer for King Artaxerxes. From his time as a slave, he learned that “the people of his homeland were in a calamitous, miserable, and depressed situation. They were being criticized and harassed by their enemies, they lived in constant fear of attack, and their lives were like the walls that surround them, in ruins.”
Yes, Nehemiah clearly recognized the need and was personally concerned. One will never be used of God to bring blessing until his eyes are opened and made to feel the pain of others. Once the great plight is recognized, we often jump directly into action of our own making and attempt to remedy the problem. “Let’s go fight in Ukraine!”
Until we go to the One Whose place it is to conduct all the affairs of men and meld their efforts into one harmonious plan, our efforts are futile! We must learn the power of prayer. If we are not careful, we become “prayerless worriers” instead of “prayer warriors”!
How should we pray. Following Nehemiah’s example, we will always begin with praise. God has been so good to us that this phase of prayer can never be exhausted! Spend days writing a list of things for which we are thankful and give the Lord praise.
Next, Nehemiah moved to confession. He only used the pronouns “we” and “I” instead of trying to blame the problems as he saw them on others. There is where most prayers get bogged down – we try the “blame game” instead of recognizing our desperate, personal need of God’s forgiveness.
Because Nehemiah knew God’s Word, he was able to quote Scriptures about God’s Promises. There are over 365 Promises in God’s Word, and when we know them, we can ask God to bring those blessings our way! So many today know not what they could be asking. Years ago, I read a book that said when we get to Heaven, our Lord is going to take each of us into a great big room, which is filled with presents each with our name’s attached. We are going to begin opening them and discover that they could have come in very handy, would have met a special need in our earthly life, had we had those gifts then. We will ask our Lord, “Why didn’t I receive that special gift while on earth, when I truly needed it?” He will reply, “You never asked!”
Only after praise, confession, and claiming God’s Scriptural promises are we ready to yell, “HELP!” Often “Help” is the only thing we say when we pray! But if we are to receive our petitions, we must go to God according to His plan.
Allow me to conclude with what I will call the demands of prayer! They are that we learn the importance of waiting, which is especially important to we who desire immediate gratification. We need to have a clear vision of the situation and not spend all our energies “jumping to conclusions”. We must quieten our hearts; faith and anxiousness never work well together! Hope and peace will replace the petty and critical that often come when we have not taken time pray!
Combat enemies with Godly Influence!
