by: Carole Lynne Haines
Sanballat was very angry when he learned that we were rebuilding the wall. He flew into a rage and mocked the Jews, 2 saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers, “What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they’re doing? Do they think they can build the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap—and charred ones at that?”
3 Tobiah the Ammonite, who was standing beside him, remarked, “That stone wall would collapse if even a fox walked along the top of it!”
4 Then I prayed, “Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked. May their scoffing fall back on their own heads and may they themselves become captives in a foreign land! 5 Do not ignore their guilt. Do not blot out their sins, for they have provoked you to anger here in front of the builders.”
6 At last the wall was completed to half its height around the entire city, for the people had worked with enthusiasm. Nehemiah 4:1-6 NLT)
We’ve all had them, nay-sayers. Negative thinkers, with their discouraging words. Sometimes we are the nay-sayer for ourselves or others, speaking defeat before we have even started what God has called us to do. In the above passage of Nehemiah, the enemies of Israel were trying to discourage and dissuade the people from completing the task that God had called them too. As we can see, in this instance they were unsuccessful. Yet in another place in Scripture, they gave into fear and stopped the work.
23 When this letter from King Artaxerxes was read to Rehum, Shimshai, and their colleagues, they hurried to Jerusalem. Then, with a show of strength, they forced the Jews to stop building.
24 So the work on the Temple of God in Jerusalem had stopped, and it remained at a standstill until the second year of the reign of King Darius of Persia. (Ezra 4:23-24 NLT)
If you can, read all of Ezra 4, it is fascinating. Now I want to confess that at least twice in my life I have stopped doing God’s work because of Nay-sayers and setbacks. Once I was writing my first book, and someone arose to try and knock me down with their rejections and harsh treatment. It worked, I stopped writing the book and never finished it. I have written 6 since then, but never finished that one. I stopped for years because I believed their assessment of me instead of God’s.
Secondly, it was with my music. I led a Women’s Retreat for the first time and was criticized for the songs I picked. That shut me down for years too. I now work with my husband in writing and publishing our music. We have 5 different CD projects finished to this date. You can find them at
https://hisshadowings.com
Now, I tell you this so that you will know that recovery is possible from giving in to the naysayers. God does not give up on us, even when we give in to fear. He waits for us to get back up from the fall and begin walking, then running with Him again. If you have given in to nay-sayers in your own journey, just get back up in His grace and start walking again. Do not let them delay you like I did. God is faithful and no one can thwart God’s plans for you, Dear Believer. No, not anyone. So, get up, get praising, and get moving toward Him. God Bless you all.
hisshadowings.com 