Nehemiah - Oh God Strengthen My Hands

Nehemiah

“Oh God Strengthen My Hands”

Illust: Rock Climbing in WV

One of my favorite hobbies of all time is rock climbing. Some of my fondest memories of college are going on rock climbing adventures with several of my best friends. Early on in my rock climbing “career” we went on a climbing trip to West Virginia.

We had a ton of confidence and very little experience and expertise.

One of the first routes we climbed was way out of our league. And of course I was the guinea pig. I started to climb and made it about halfway up before realizing that there was a bolt missing in the mountain. I made a game time decision and decided to skip the bolt and try to make it to the next one that was 15 feet higher. Knowing full well that if I were to fall it would be about a 30-foot+ free-fall.

I made it within inches of being able to clip in before getting the shaky arm and shaky leg. My muscles had completely given away and I yelled "falling!"

I learned a lesson that day that would carry with me for the rest of my life.

Big Idea: Story of Nehemiah

Today we're going to look at the story of Nehemiah, who is in my opinion one of the greatest examples on leadership. We’re going to focus on what I believe to be the key to Nehemiah’s success as a leader.

There are many tangible expressions of great leadership found in this story, but there seems to be a common thread throughout his life that if understood and applied could make all the difference in our lives.

Passage: Nehemiah

Nehemiah 6:9 says, “For they all wanted to frighten us, thinking, "Their hands will drop from the work, and it will not be done." But now, O God, strengthen my hands.”

Pray: (Pause 3-5 seconds)

Background: Quick Recap…

Nehemiah had a call on his life to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was destroyed in 586 B.C. It was 141 years later Nehemiah comes on the scene and hears about how his people have returned and are in distress. Not only are they in distress but also the wall of Jerusalem is broken down. The wall in a pile of rubble was a disgrace to the Hebrew people. He knew God had called him to this task and he was committed whatever the cost.

Nehemiah had a comfortable position as the cupbearer to the king of Persia. So making the decision to request to build the wall took great courage and meant great sacrifice.

The king granted him permission and showed him favor to begin building the wall of Jerusalem.

In this passage we see him complete the task. Despite many threats, deceit, challenges, and obstacles, we see the task finished and in record time.

In our time together I want to unpack the posture of Nehemiah’s heart as he cries out to God for strength to finish the task. And I want us to examine our own lives this morning in light of Scripture, so that, when we pray “Oh God, strengthen my hands” we can truly experience the power of God on our lives.

There are 3 characteristics that I want us to talk about this morning:

1. Committed to Prayer (Found in Nehemiah 1)

   1. There is a series of events that happen in chapter 1 that I believe tell us a little about Nehemiah's habits and character.

   2. When Nehemiah heard how his people were in great trouble and that the wall of Jerusalem is destroyed he said “As soon as I heard these words I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.” Nehemiah 1:4

      1. Question: When was the last time we were so broken over the condition of our people that we fell on our knees and wept before God?
      2. If I’m being honest, my response would be “I can fix this!” Or maybe play the blame game, “It’s really _______’s fault. Jerusalem wouldn’t even be in this position if _______ would have done a better job!”

      3. It’s much easier to blame a person or the circumstances instead of feeling the weight of the situation and crying out to God in our brokenness.

         3. “let your ear be attentive and your eyes open, to hear the prayer of your servant that I now pray before you day and night for the people of Israel your servants, confessing the sins of the people of Israel, which we have sinned against you. Even I and my father’s house have sinned.” Nehemiah 1:6

      4. Confession of sins and prayer are inseparable. You cannot have one without the other

      5. “but your iniquities have made a separation between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face for you so that he does not hear.” Isaiah 59:2
      6. “If I had cherished iniquity in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.” Psalm 66:18
      7. If we want to experience the power of God on our lives we must confess our sins and commit to living a holy life before God.

      8. Illust: Disciplining My Kids

         1. I have four very cute, yet very rowdy little kids. They are pretty good most of the time, but we all have our moments. Just the other day Cory, my second child, was very disrespectful to his momma. I brought him close and explained why that’s not how we act and told him to walk over and apologize for what he did. He was very reluctant and as he got closer to her I could see tears fill his eyes. It was then I could see that he was genuinely broken over what he had said and was needing forgiveness.
         2. Confessing our sins and wrong doings is not easy. It takes some serious humility to say “I’m sorry. I messed up”. But that’s the point. Confessing our sin is nothing more than a reflection of our hearts and posture towards the Father. It’s letting the Father know. You’re worthy of my love and affections. I’ve disobeyed, lied, and disrespected you King Jesus. Please forgive me.
            4. “O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man.” Now I was cupbearer to the king.” Nehemiah 1:11

      9. “If we’re going to have success it’s going to be because of you King Jesus. You alone have the power to grant success.”

      10. Trust me when I tell you that you don’t want to try and make it through on your efforts alone!
      11. A preacher recently told me a quote that has stuck with me. He said “God can do more in a second of prayer than we could do in a lifetime of our own efforts.” Do you believe that?

2. Dependent on God (Nehemiah 4:8-9, 20)

3. The rebuilding of the wall was not merely a result of good leadership, there was another power at play through something so simple, Nehemiah had a humble dependence on God.

4. “And they all plotted together to come and fight against Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. And we prayed to our God and set a guard as a protection against them day and night.” (Verses 8-9)
5. But Nehemiah said “In the place where you hear the sound of the trumpet, rally to us there. Our God will fight for us.” Nehemiah 4:20
6. In order to experience the fullness of God's power we must be willing to release control and and fully surrender.
7. Control of the desired outcome. Control of EVERYTHING in order for Him to have full access. God will fight for you!
8. "Oh God strengthen my hands!” If it's going to happen it's going to be because of you! I don't want the credit! I don't want the glory! I don't want the fame! It's about you Jesus! “Oh God, Strengthen my hands oh God!"

9. When the enemy attacks your calling and says you can't do it!

   1. -> "Oh God strengthen my hands." When people say “It’s too risky!”
   2. -> "Oh God strengthen my hands." When people say “It’s too reckless!”
   3. -> "Oh God, strengthen my hands!" When it looks nothing like you planned and you become overwhelmed!
   4. -> "Oh God, strengthen my hands!”
   5. HE WILL SHOW UP AND DO THE WORK THAT ONLY HE CAN DO IN THE FIRST PLACE!

10. Faithful To The End (Nehemiah 6:15-16)

11. When we face opposition and challenges it is tempting to say “God, remove me from this situation.” But Nehemiah prays “Strengthen my hands.” He remained faithful to his responsibilities and trusted in the strength that God would provide.

12. “So the wall was finished on the twenty-fifth day of the month Elul, in fifty-two days. And when all our enemies heard of it, all the nations around us were afraid and fell greatly in their own esteem, for they perceived that this work had been accomplished with the help of our God.” Nehemiah 6:15-16
13. When we stay faithful to the end, committed in prayer, and dependent on God, people will take notice.
14. Whatever the obstacle is in front of you, stay faithful. If it feels like it’s more than you can bear, stay faithful. If you are starting to doubt God’s call on your life and you’re saying “I’m done!” stay faithful. You will have victory by the power of God and the people will know it was God and God alone!

Often times we like to take a verse out of the bible, like this one, and say “Yes, God strengthen my hands!” and we claim it without ever considering the context of the story.

In this passage we see Nehemiah coming to God with a humble spirit, having been committed in prayer and confession of sins, fully dependent on God, and staying faithful to the end.

Question: How are you approaching God this morning?

Illust Cont.: Rock Climbing in WV

The lesson I learned that day that would carry with me for the rest of my life was that I could trust the free fall. I became a better and more confident climber because I let go. "Oh God, strengthen my hands" is not a prayer to grip harder in my own strength. It is asking God for His strength to keep my hands on the work.

You cannot do it alone. You will get tired. You will feel overwhelmed. Your hands will shake and your knees will shake. Let go of your own strength and trust God.

When you keep at it in your own strength it’s often times going to look just like you predicted. But when you let go and trust God. And truly rely on His strength. It may look nothing like you planned, more often than not it looks nothing like you planned, but He is faithful and will give you strength to overcome and finish the task.

You see, I became a better rock climber that day. No longer was I afraid to fall. I gained more confidence in the rope and the anchors. It gave me confidence to try more difficult mountains because I knew I could trust the free-fall. And I want you to know this morning, so can you.

Let’s pray.