Sermon Notes 09-13-09

September 13th 2009 “The Great Opportunity”
“The words of Nehemiah son of Hacaliah: In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire.” 4When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.” Nehemiah 1:1-4

Are we in “Lean Times?”The Government is intruding into our private life!The Government competing with the private market:
September 2008 Congress approved $25 Billion for GM Government Motors and Chrysler,
Bank of America bailed out to the tune of: $142.2 Billion; Citigroup bailout: $280 billion;
October 2008 Congress passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act to the tune of $700 Billion; AIG received $180 Billion dollars; Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac received on Sep. 7, 2008, $400 Billion; JP Morgan/Chase got $30 Billion bailout”

Also, We are talking Trillions of dollars for the Gov. proposed Health Care Program—can we all agree; Are we in “Lean Times?” The Great Struggle is on!

Nehemiah, lived in “Lean Times!” Nehemiah thrived in the midst of difficult times—465 to 424 B.C.Israel had turned its back on the teachings of the Torah and embraced the gods of the surrounding countries; so God judged them by allowing the Assyrians to capture and carry them off to Babylon—27,280 men, plus wives and children—2nd Kings 17:6. Judah, called the Southern Kingdom and Named after David because he was from the tribe of Judah; Judah was the smallest section of Israel which was on the Western side of the Jordan. Remember each Tribe had its own territory when they came from Egypt?

Points to Ponder:When Facing lean times—what to do?
1st Proceed slowly!

At first!Nehemiah 1:4 “4When I heard these things, I sat down and wept.” Wait upon the Lord?
My Personality is not about “Waiting!”
It’s important to know your personality and the tendencies of it!
This is not some kind of spiritual procrastination … rather, it’s a careful study of the situation, “I sat down and wept.”,
The first instruction is to be silent … and to do nothing at all.

Jesus said: "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, 'This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.' Luke 14:28-30

Illustration: A surgeon and his team don’t go slowly through a procedure because they’re intent on wasting time … they go slowly because so much is at stake! And aren’t we glad! Don’t ever go to a surgeon who brags on the number of patients she’s operated on … check out to see how they’re doing! Haste makes waste, as the old saying goes!Pastor Phil: “the leaner the times, the more important it is to make correct decisions.”

Illustration: In data collected from over 20,000 Christians in 139 countries (though mostly in America) and between the ages of 15 and 88, The Obstacles to Growth Survey found that, on average, more than 4 in 10 Christians around the world say they "often" or "always" rush from task to task. About 6 in 10 Christians say that it's "often" or "always" true that "the busyness of life gets in the way of developing my relationship with God." Christians most likely to agree were from North America, Africa, and Europe.
While busyness afflicts both men and women, the distraction from God was more likely to affect men than women in every surveyed continent except North America, where 62 percent of women and 61 percent of men reported busyness as interfering with their relationship with God.

By profession, pastors are most likely to say they rush from task to task (54 percent), which adversely affects their relationship with God (65 percent).
In lean times, reading the Bible becomes more important than ever.

Points to Ponder:
When Facing lean times—what to do?
1st Proceed slowly! At first!
2nd You Must Learn to Pray!

Nehemiah 1:4 “4When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.”

Illustration: The story is told of an elderly couple who lived together in a nursing home. Though they had been married for 60 years, their relationship was filled with constant arguments, disagreements, and shouting contests. The fights didn't stop even in the nursing home. In fact, the couple argued and squabbled from the time they got up in the morning until they fell in bed at night.It became so bad that the nursing home threatened to throw them out if they didn't change their ways. Even then, the couple couldn't agree on what to do.Finally, the wife said to her husband: "I'll tell you what, Joe, let's pray that one of us dies. And after the funeral is over, I'll go live with my sister."

Let me tell you something about “lean times” and prayer.
Sheri and I have been right at this point many times and God always answers right in the nick of time!
Nehemiah prayed—and fasted “for some days.” (1:4)
The king says, Nehemiah 2:4-5 "What is it you want?"
The king has seen Nehemiah’s downcast mood, and asked a question—‘"What is it you want?"
This was his window of opportunity to save Jerusalem!

Honor God first with the seriousness of waiting before Him, bowing before Him, even fasting … and then keep praying as you try to make the right decisions.

Being alone is one thing but being alone with God is something else!
Realize that God is in charge, that God is in control.

Illustration: In his book “GOOD MORNING MERRY SUNSHINE,” CHICAGO TRIBUNE columnist, Bob Greene chronicles his infant daughter's first year of life. When little Amanda began crawling, he records:crawl again."
Prayer is like that—the choosing to come to Him!

Points to Ponder:
When Facing lean times—what to do?
1st Proceed slowly! At first!
2nd You Must Learn to Pray!
3rd Start Where you are!

Nehemiah 1:11 “I was a cupbearer to the king.”Remember when John Hinkle tried to kill President Regan—March 30th 1981?
Nehemiah was kind of like the Secret Service Agent for the King ARTAXERXES, who ruled Persia from 465 to 424 B.C.
Nehemiah was a “Cupbearer to the King.”
The “Cupbearer” is the person who throws himself in front of a bullet, who puts his life on the line … the person who tastes the wine before the king drinks it, just to be sure an assassin hasn’t tried to poison the king.

Nehemiah could have made excuses as to why he couldn’t rebuild Jerusalem.
After all, he wasn’t a Levite. He wasn’t a priest. He wasn’t even a builder.
He was JUST a cupbearer! But like anyone who is called by God to a significant task, the feelings of inadequacy give way to the necessity of the moment.
You can only start where you are. You can’t wait until some distant day in the future to get the job done, for that distant day will always stay just over the horizon.

Illustration: Jennifer started where she was, the last 8 years of her life had a greater impact on those around her than the 39 years before she got cancer!

Points to Ponder:
When Facing lean times—what to do?
1st Proceed slowly! At first!
2nd You Must Learn to Pray!
3rd Start Where you are!
4th Seize the Moment!

Nehemiah prayed, 1:11 “Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man,"
Look what Nehemiah did: Nehemiah 2:1-9 (HCSB)

In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before; 2 so the king asked me, "Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart." I was very much afraid, 3 but I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?" The king said to me, "What is it you want?" me.”

Nehemiah was ready, in part because his grief had motivated him. Nehemiah was ready, in part because he’d spend so much time and energy in fasting, in prayer, in waiting before the Lord. And to his credit, when the opportunity presented itself, Nehemiah seized the moment. The door cracked open, and Nehemiah was ready to go through it. He was sensitive to the possibility that God might be at work … so he had this razor-sharp edge of readiness that allowed him to seize the moment.

Illustration: The Chinese symbols for "crisis" are identical to those for the word "opportunity." Literally translated it reads "Crisis is an opportunity riding the dangerous wind." Seizing the moment requires the recognition that every crisis is also an opportunity for success.

Points to Ponder:
When Facing lean times—what to do?

1st Proceed slowly! At first!
2nd You Must Learn to Pray!
3rd Start Where you are!
4th Seize the Moment!