Fight For Them

By pastorbillwalden

Nehemiah 4:14 “Do not be afraid of them. Remember the Lord, great and awesome, and fight for your brethren, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your houses”.

God is sovereign, but man is responsible.  As far as I know, no one ever accidentally ends up in heaven.  There is a fight that must be fought.  There was a fight that was fought to make it possible.

The people of Jerusalem had grown accustomed to the walls being torn down and lying in rubble.  Decades had passed, and they had done nothing to remedy the situation.  They lived in distress and reproach, but that was the new normal for them.  Shame, embarrassment, stress and danger was what they settled for.  They were a disheartened people.

God gave Nehemiah a burden for the people, and for the glory of the City where God dwelt. He labored in prayer, and then he labored with his hands.  He inspired the people to live the way that God wanted for them.  He moved them to change.  They had a newfound “mind to work”.  

The enemies of God and His people were quick to attack verbally, with threats and mocking. Nehemiah countered with prayer and exhortation to the people.  He told them to fight and build.  They wore swords as they worked. They were inspired to do something that they had neglected for decades.  They were discovering who they were in God.

Dear Christian: Is there anybody you are willing to fight for? Will you fight for them in prayer and fasting?  Will you deny yourself pleasure and entertainment and even rest in order to bring the truth, hope, and love of God to them?  Will you visit them, wait for them, pay for them, drive them, help them, listen to them, serve them, again and again?

Will you fight for children that are going in the wrong direction?  Will you fight for your marriage, and for your spouse Will you fight for your neighbors, your community, your city, your extended family?

Will you fight for people with addictions?  Will you fight for those who are self destructive? Will you spend and be spent for others? (2 Corinthians 12:15)

Does the sphere of your existence start and stop at your front door, or do you have eyes and a heart beyond your own personal world?  Do you simultaneously enjoy the blessings of life, but always carry a holy burden for people, or do you avoid any “heaviness” of life, and leave people to fight for themselves?

If you know Jesus today, there was probably someone that fought for you, prayed for you when you didn’t care, thought of you when you were confused and lost, and yearned for you when you were selfish and lived only for yourself.  Someone prayed you into God’s kingdom, longed for you, spoke to you, waited for you.  Someone gave of themselves so that you would have ears to hear the invitation of Jesus.

Dear Christian: Be a Nehemiah.  Fight for the souls and well being of others, and then inspire others to fight as well.

Why is it that you think we are here?

The Blessings Of Withdrawing

By pastorbillwalden

Our church just finished a week of prayer and fasting. The week began with a great message from my friend, Pastor Daniel Fusco, as he preached at our church, his sermon being entitled “The Ministry Of Withdrawal”. Give it a listen and prepare to be challenged.

Some people in our church put great forth great effort in fasting from food and certain beverages.  Others fasted from media, i.e., T.V., Facebook, etc.  What was withdrawn from was up to each person.  Time was set aside to seek God. Unnecessary things were set aside in order to seek God. We met each night from Sunday-Thursday, and joined other churches via webcasts, and we prayed, worshiped, and took communion.

I was greatly blessed by withdrawing from certain things.  For me, they are things not needed, and at times, are wasteful.   I believe that the greatest hindrance to the American Church is what Jesus called “the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches”. (Matthew 13:22) There is much unfruitfulness in the Body of Christ in America.  I include myself in that statement.

This week I was blessed to taste more deeply of the Lord, and I was refreshed and reminded that He is indeed good.

I pray for myself, our church, and every Christian I know, that we would withdraw from that which us from Jesus, and which does not satisfy, but rather, leaves us thirsty.  Recreation and entertainment is fine to a point, but we are over saturated with the temporal and suffer leanness in things spiritual.

As far as I can see, prayer is neglected, holiness is a concept, and Jesus is our “bro”.  I want that to change in my life.

“Father, bring revival to my heart and the hearts of every Christian I know.  Save us from materialism and the addiction to entertainment, and cause us to be hungry for you as never before.  We do not ask you to empty us out.  We ask you to help us empty ourselves out.  We ask that you would break our hearts over our carnality, that we would empty ourselves out, that you may fill us”.

Agonize, But Don’t Marginalize

By pastorbillwalden

Below is an answer to a last minute question which was submitted by text at our Sunday Service on Feb. 7, 2010.  Not all of the text came through, but I think I understand the gist of the question.

The question was about loving our children for who they are, not who we wish they were.

Read more »