So it's very easy to get disheartened and discouraged. We have to continue to keep our vision. Notice they've got their eyes on the rubbish, rather than on the vision. They've got their eyes on the problems, rather than seeing what God was wanting to build. You've got to keep your eye on the vision. I'll show you what Nehemiah did to fix it in just a moment; and then the final thing you see there is fear - so fatigue and frustration and fear - key things that stop us working and building. Now there's always someone tries to oppose the work of God, but the first thing is, demons will oppose the work of God. You'll always have pressure on your mind and heart, but the worst kind of discouragement is the discouragement that comes - notice the Christians, the Jews who live near the enemy. Believers, who live compromised, usually are cynical, critical, negative, about the work of God. I'd hope you wouldn't be one of them. Notice what it says, the Jews who lived near the enemy - believers whose lives are so compromised, and so far from God, that all they can report is negativity.
Notice 10 times they said: oh, oh, like the Scotsman in Dad's Army, ooh, oh, you know - just always doom and gloom! We're doomed! That's the kind of message they come up. For some people, that's all they come up with; and you notice the way it's put: they. I don't know who 'they' are, but 'they' are saying: it can't be done. They, all of them are saying that. Lots of people are saying this. That's the way it goes. You just ask the question, well who? Goes very quiet. Goes very quiet. We don't need negativity. Negative people are already defeated. They're the Jews next to the enemy. I don't want to be the Jews next to the enemy; I want to be building the house of God. I don't want to be living in that kind of stuff. We need to have our life so we're free from that kind of stuff, and we're living in faith. I want you to see what Nehemiah did, because he did a very, very simple thing. I'll just finish with just simply what he did. He's very, very good.
Nehemiah looked at the scene. He realised: man, I've got to do something! I love the way he doesn't react, he just looks at the deal, and then he makes a decision: I'm going to solve the problems. God wants you to be a problem-solver, not a problem-pointer-outer! A lot of people are problem-pointer-outers. We should go for a walk through the city, and point out the problems - but actually we're not called to do that. We're called to provide solutions! The Holy Ghost is a source of solutions!
So he did three simple things: number one, he got them reconnected. He positioned the men, so notice what he did: positioned the men behind the lower parts of the wall, set the men according to their families. He got everyone reconnected, just got people connected. One of the things when you're discouraged and down - just get connected to other believers who are positive. Get connected to people who love you. Notice, he put them in family groups - where there's love, and there's care, and there's nurture? We need to be connected to people who care about you; but you know something? It doesn't happen unless you follow the Holy Ghosts direction - and get connected. You've got to make the connections. Get on the phone. Get into a small group. Go somewhere where you've got people who know you, love you, and if you're down they can say: what's going on? Can we lift you up? Can we encourage you?
The second thing he did was - restore their focus. He said to them: remember the Lord. Don't be afraid of the enemy (verse 14) remember the Lord, great and awesome - and fight. Get some fight in you. Don't lie down, be a beaten up Christian because, you've got some troubles. Get insight, get back, and get remembering God. One of the greatest things you can do is begin to remember the past victories of the Lord, remember how God has touched the lives of other people, remember the stories in the Bible, remember! Get back into your mind how great God is! Then the rubble starts to get smaller, and smaller, as we get a bigger God in our mind. You get focus back on the Lord.