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HOW TO ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS (2)
…If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favour
in his sight….’ Nehemiah 2:5 NIV
Pray for favour with the right people. When you study the
lives of successful people, you’ll find they had vision,
patience, determination, character and talent. And you’ll
also find one more thing at work—favour. There are some
closed doors that will open when you approach them in
faith, and there are other doors that’ll open only with help
from the right people. That’s when you need favour! Alex
Haley, the author of Roots, had a picture in his office. It
was of a turtle sitting on top of an eight-foot-high
fencepost, and the caption read, ‘You can be sure he
didn’t get up there by himself’! Nehemiah needed an army
to protect him, and resources to enable him to build. So he
prayed, then went to the one man who could provide what
he needed: the king. He said, ‘If it pleases the king and if
your servant has found favour in his sight, let him send me
to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I
can rebuild it.’ And the king did. There’s an important
lesson here: when your heart is set on promoting God’s
kingdom, He will give you ‘kingdom connections’. But be
careful; your help may not always come via the people
you expect, agree with, or even like. God used a heathen
king to help Nehemiah, and He used a penniless widow to
feed the prophet Elijah. Don’t dictate to God who He can
and cannot use. Just pray for favour, expect it, and accept
it with thanks in whatever form He sends it.
Joel 2: 12-13, Matthew 4: 1-17, Mark 2: 18-22, Luke 9:
23-26

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HOW TO ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS
‘…They replied, ‘Let us start rebuilding.’ So they began
this good work.’
Nehemiah 2:18 NIV
It’s said that of all the people who have dreams, only one
out of ten will fulfil theirs. Why? Because the other nine
never started! To enter the Promised Land, Israel had to
cross the Jordan River when it was in flood and they were
afraid. But God said, ‘When you step into the water it will
roll back’ (See Joshua 3). It did, and they reached their
destiny. So, what are you waiting for? 1) Perfect
conditions? You’ll never find them. ‘Whoever watches the
wind will not plant; whoever looks at the clouds will not
reap’ (Ecclesiastes 11:4 NIV). The New Living Translation
says, ‘If you wait for perfect conditions, you will never get
anything done.’ You say, ‘I’m waiting for God to move.’
Has it occurred to you that maybe He’s waiting for you to
move?
2) Everybody to agree with you? When David announced
his intention to fight Goliath, his older brother Eliab, a
general in King Saul’s army, told him to go back home
because he was embarrassing the family. But David
refused to be put off or put down; instead, he went out and
defeated the giant. And with God’s help you can too! 3)
Until you feel ‘qualified’? God doesn’t always call the
qualified, but He always qualifies the called. Regardless
of your education, nationality, or gender, God can use you.
Oliver Wendell Holmes started studying Greek at eighty.
When a friend asked him why, he replied, ‘Frankly, it’s
now or never!’ Because Nehemiah was willing to start,
God gave him a glorious finish. And He will do the same
for you. So what are you waiting for? Get moving!
Ephesian 5: 21-33, Song 2: 1-7, Psalm 45, Proverb 5:
15-19

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HOW TO ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS (4)
‘Lord, let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of this Your
servant…’Nehemiah 1:11 NIV
You must ask God for the plan. Why? Because the only
plan He will bless is the one He gives you. Every good
idea isn’t necessarily a God-idea. The Bible says, ‘Many
are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the Lord’s
purpose that prevails’ (Proverbs 19:21 NIV). How will you
know your plan lines up with God’s plan, especially when
you encounter obstacles and opposition? In two ways: 1)
A fire will burn within you. Jeremiah said, ‘…His word is in
my heart like a fire…shut up in my bones. I am weary of
holding it in; indeed, I cannot’ (Jeremiah 20:9 NIV). When
God places a burning desire within you, He will enable
you to rise above the adverse circumstances that
surround you. You’ll find yourself drawn, driven, directed,
and dedicated. You may not always be able to explain it
to others, but you’ll know deep inside that you are in the
will of God. 2) God will show you the right path to take. ‘…
along unfamiliar paths I will guide them; I will turn the
darkness into light before them and make the rough
places smooth. These are the things I will do; I will not
forsake them’ (Isaiah 42:16 NIV). Note the words
‘unfamiliar paths…darkness…rough places’, but don’t be
thrown or discouraged by them. Instead, expect them!
David said, ‘The Lord will work out His plans for my life—
for Your faithful love, O Lord, endures forever…’ (Psalms
138:8 NLT). And David’s God is your God—He hasn’t
changed one iota!
Titus 1-3, Matthew 14: 13-21,
Psalm 145: 1-13, Prov 4:20-22

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HOW TO ACCOMPLISH GREAT THINGS (5)
‘…Those who carried materials did their work with one
hand and held a weapon in the other.’ Nehemiah 4:17 NIV
Do you know how Nehemiah’s team rebuilt the walls of
Jerusalem? With a sword in one hand and a trowel in the
other. Why is that significant? Because even though God
gives you the plan, the chances are you’ll have to fight for
it. Not everyone wants you to succeed. In fact, some will
do everything they can to stop you. That’s when you must
constantly remind yourself that God gave you the plan,
that He’s on your side, and that if you’re willing to
persevere, you’ll win. God guarantees it! Listen to what
Nehemiah’s enemies said about him: ‘It is reported…you
are about to become their king and have even appointed
prophets to make this proclamation about you in
Jerusalem: “There is a king in Judah!” Now this report will
get back to the king…’ (Nehemiah 6:6-7 NIV). Nehemiah
had to overcome threats and intimidation. He wrote: ‘…
They were scheming to harm me; so I sent messengers to
them with this reply: “I am carrying on a great project and
cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave
it to go down to you?’’’ (Nehemiah 6:2-3 NIV). Every
minute devoted to your critics is time stolen from your
God-given assignment. Don’t step down to their level!
It’s not what your enemies say that matters; it’s what you
say to yourself when your enemies have finished talking.
‘[Nehemiah] answered them by saying, “The God of
heaven will give us success…but as for you, you will have
no share in Jerusalem or any claim…to it’’' (Nehemiah
2:20 NIV). Now that’s the winning attitude.
Hebrew 1-4, Matthew 14: 22-36,
Psalm 145: 14-21, Proverb 4: 23-24
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