Learning & Living Above The Attacks Of The Enemy In Your Life (Part 2)

September 25, 2018
Dear Visionary Leader:
I hope you are enjoying the “Hand Me Another Brick” series. For many years, I have been desiring to articulate this leadership series. If you have missed some of the previous ezines, you can find them at https://billion.tv/resources/ezine-archive.

As we learned in our last ezine, the enemy came with “distraction” to Nehemiah. He offered him “the good” in the place of “the best.” Yet, good things become bad things when they keep us from the best things. Nehemiah was invited to come to Ono for “a meeting of the minds.” Yet, he said no to Ono! He said, “I am doing a great work, and you are not going to sidetrack me.”
When I was fifteen years old, I was the pitcher of our high school baseball team. I had been playing baseball since I was five. I grew up enjoying this sport.
After a particular afternoon of baseball practice, I was walking across an open field, knowing my mother would be waiting for me in her car on the other side to take me home. While I was walking, Holy Spirit asked me, “What do you plan to do with the rest of your life?” I responded out loud while walking, “Lord, you know you have called me into the ministry. I will be a preacher all the days of my life.”
Holy Spirit responded to my answer with this question, “Then, why are you spending so much time practicing a sport that you will not be doing?” That was the last day I played baseball for our high school team. I had to make a decision.
Life is filled with practice, practice and more practice. The key to success is to practice what you are called to do, and to do it with all your might! Focus (or refocus) your energy on what really matters the most, all the days of your life. If you sow early and sow long, your harvest in your later years will be greater than you could have ever imagined!
We learned in our last teaching that Nehemiah was attacked and invited to the “land of distraction.” Satan will try to distract us in many different ways and on many different levels. Yet, to each distraction he sends, we have to say, “I am doing such a great work, I don’t have the time to waste on things outside of the will of God.”
B. Defamation
In Nehemiah 6:5-7, we read,”Then sent Sanballat his servant unto me in like manner the fifth time with an open letter in his hand; wherein was written, It is reported among the heathen, and Gashmu saith it, that thou and the Jews think to rebel: for which cause thou buildest the wall, that thou mayest be their king, according to these words. And thou hast also appointed prophets to preach of thee at Jerusalem, saying, There is a king in Judah: and now shall it be reported to the king according to these words. Come now therefore, and let us take counsel together.”
Never underestimate the devil. Do you know what Sanballat was saying to Nehemiah? Nehemiah wouldn’t come down and have a little meeting with him; so, Sanballat sent an open letter.

It was meant to embarrass Nehemiah. And, this is what it said: “Nehemiah, it is reported. . .” Now, it’s just a rumor. “. . .It is reported that you’re trying to set yourself up as king. You’re not really interested in these people. You’re not really interested in rebuilding the walls. What you’re doing, Nehemiah, is this: You’re trying to feather your own nest. You’re building a little kingdom for yourself. You intend to set yourself up as king.” What Sanballat did was to slander the motives of the man of God!
It’s always true: When any church or ministry tries to do something for God, there are always those who say, “What about their motives? Their motives are wrong.” About any preacher who tries to lead his church in a great program, they’ll say, “Well, he’s trying to feather his own nest. He’s trying to build a little kingdom for himself (or herself).”
The devil is very clever, isn’t he? And, the devil knows how to use slander! What did Nehemiah do when they began to slander him, and even wrote an open letter about it? What did he do? He just kept on building the walls. I like that!
He said, “You’re wrong. What you say is not true.” He answered the charge clearly and plainly, and then he went on. Notice verse 8: “Then I sent unto him, saying, There are no such things done as thou sayest, but thou feignest them out of thine own heart.” In other words, “They’re lies, and I’m not going to run around trying to stamp out every lie.”
Henry Ward Beecher once said, “Life would be a perpetual flea hunt. . .” (I like that, a perpetual flea hunt!) “. . .if a man were obliged to run down all the innuendoes, the inveracities, the insinuations, and the misrepresentations that are uttered against him.” Nehemiah simply said, “I refuse to be on the flea hunt.”
More than 150 years ago, Abraham Lincoln stated, “If I were to try to read, much less answer, all of the attacks made on me, this shop might as well be closed for any other business. I do the very best I know how, the very best I can, and I mean to keep on doing it until the end. If the end brings me out all right, what is said against me won’t amount to anything. And, if the end brings me out wrong, ten angels swearing that I was right would make no difference.”
You see, you need not be frightened by slanderers. Anybody who serves God is going to be slandered. The servant is not better than his master (Matthew 10:24). Remember what they said about Jesus? They said that Jesus Christ was a winebibber and a glutton, and in league with the devil himself. Now, if you live for God in your ministry, in your business, in your school–wherever you are–you might as well get ready for detractors to impugn your motives. Don’t get sidetracked! Just stay on the wall and wear them out.
Until The Last Person Has Heard,
Dr. James. O. Davis
Founder/President
Global Church Network
Cochair / Global Networking