Every Day with Jesus

Nelson Mandela was always committed to non-violent protest against apartheid – until the Sharpeville Massacre of 1960 where sixty-nine black protestors were killed by South African police. There seemed no way for change other than violent retaliation, so Mandela became the leader of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the military wing of the African National Congress.* 

Have you ever had a situation where you did something embarrassing, and everyone around you started laughing at you? It’s the stuff of nightmares, because it taps into the deepest part of us where we feel shame. Sarah had reason to feel shame – she carried the disgrace of not being a mother in a society that only valued women for motherhood. 

In counselling training, students are told they should try to mirror the person’s body language as far as possible to show empathy. However, there are important exceptions. Sometimes a person can laugh with ‘gallows laughter’. 

There are two types of people in life: those who act like they are the hero of the story and everything revolves around them, and those who feel they’re more like a sidekick, even in their own life. Hero-types tend to be confident about their purpose and importance in life, whereas ‘sidekicks’ find it harder to define themselves and their purpose outside of other people. 

Think of something you truly need or long for in this world in order to feel your life has meaning. Have you thought of it? Now imagine that God has prophesied you will have that very thing you’re longing for, and your long waiting will be over. How do you feel then? Now imagine that it’s been ten years, and the joyful prophecy you told everyone about has never come to pass. 

How does the Bible begin? You might want to say, ‘with creation’, but look closer: it begins with waiting. Before God spoke the world into existence and time as we know it began, the Spirit was there, waiting, poised, hovering over the deep. 

After fifty-two days of prayer, hard work and overcoming the enemy’s deception, the wall was completed. Fifty-two days. The walls had been left in ruins for seventy years and yet the city was transformed in a matter of days. 

Nehemiah was entitled to money and food from the people. As mentioned earlier, to demand this was the practise of previous governors. It was considered normal to request more, even though the King already provided them an ox, six sheep and some poultry each day and a wine delivery every ten days (v18a). Power and wealth are often insatiable. 

I am not sure how big your table is, but I am sure it is not as big as Nehemiah’s – he seemed to fit 150 people around it! Admittedly, the phrase ‘ate at my table’ may have simply meant that he provided food for 150 people each day, but it is still an incredible image of hospitality. 

Work is not something to be avoided, it is a good thing. We are designed to work, to care, to produce, to create and to be fruitful. From the beginning of time, Adam is placed in a beautiful garden where everything was as it should be. 

We live in a self-obsessed world, where our own selfish needs and desires are central to the decisions we make. A commonly used phrase would be ‘me first’ or ‘look after number one’, and reinforced by encouraging comments such as ‘you do you’ or ‘look after yourself’. It all seems a lovely and kind approach. But 

Nehemiah demanded of himself and the other wealthy members of the community, that they would restore any assets and repay any interest that had been charged. A big ask. But the response is positive and all those in attendance promise to give everything back and demand nothing more from the people. 

Many television shows replicate the idea of restoration. It is heart-warming to see something that seemed to have had its day and lost all value being restored to its former glory. Whether that be a piece of furniture found in a skip or a pet that became separated from its owner, or an adult fostered as a child discovering family they had never met. Restoration is bringing something back to its or...

Jesus said to His disciples in Matthew 26 that the poor will always be with you, having just said in Matthew 22 to love our neighbours as ourselves, and in even clearer detail in Matthew 25 about how in the final days God will judge us on how we treat people. Throughout His life on earth, Jesus modelled what He taught by intentionally looking out for opportunities to include society’s outcasts. 

At the end of chapter 4 there is great victory over the enemy, the wall continues to be built, albeit slower, as they hold a sword in one hand and a trowel in another. But now there is infighting and it seems as though the building work has stopped as it does not get mentioned. It is interesting how in just a few days they go from this beautiful community in chapter 3, working hard together across...

The motto created by Lord Baden-Powell for the Scout’s movement was ‘Be prepared’. It was the idea that from a young age, Scouts would learn to survive and thrive, wherever they might find themselves. That they would be able to tie knots, make a shelter, stay safe and know what a woggle was and how it should be used. 

In our home we have a large family. So, over the years, we have created a tradition of ringing a bell when it is time for the evening meal. Once the bell is rung, children come from all directions, salivating at the prospect of food. If we have visitors, there is often some surprise at the sound of a bell being rung and even more surprise when children appear instantaneously at the meal table, sea...

Poor Nehemiah. The wall is half built and everyone has done so well to get to this point, but now people are tired and starting to grumble. Just as he is trying to work out how to keep the work moving forward, he gets given a message repeatedly: ‘They will come from all directions and attack us’. 

Years ago I ran the London Marathon. It was an incredible day. I had trained for months; I was in good condition and joined thousands of others on the starting line. I remember the moment it started to go wrong. Tower Bridge, around the halfway mark. I was feeling good and thinking, ‘This is great, I am halfway. Just got to do that again.’ 

It is often in children’s movies and comic books that enemies are obvious in their actions. The reality is that in life the enemy is often sneaky. Confusion is caused, by the whisper of gossip in the staff canteen, the seemingly innocent question in the company boardroom, the text message or social media post that could be read in many different ways. 

Is the glass half full or half empty? This is often the question that is asked to determine whether you are an optimist or a pessimist. But life is never as simple as the remains of a drink in a glass. There is always something that needs doing. 

I don’t know what your natural reaction is when you face opposition and persecution. Maybe it is to run away from the situation, to get yourself out of the room, away from the confrontation and hope it will go away. Or maybe you react with excess strength and retaliate, saying things you later regret or getting physical and pushing the problem away. 

As we mentioned earlier, haters are going to hate. It seems that success, which we prayed for yesterday, breeds opposition. But this seemingly overnight success was a long time coming. Nehemiah’s predecessor was Zerubbabel (Ezra 1–6), who led the first Jewish exiles back to Jerusalem and completed the rebuilding of the temple in 516 BC. But rather than continue rebuilding the city, they stopped. 

This is a beautiful moment in the story of Nehemiah. We started in chapter 1 with Nehemiah feeling alone in the pain for the state of his homeland (1:4). From that point we see his concerns being shared with the king (2:5), then with the few (2:12), then with the leaders (2:17) and now everyone is playing their part. 

Challenges will always come our way. The author James writes, ‘Consider it pure joy… whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance’ (Jas 1:2–3) We may not enjoy them, but life is full of hurdles to be overcome.