My
company is under attack. This past weekend was one of the worst weekends on
record for us. Over one and a half years of being in business and we have only
ever gotten one complaint. This past weekend, however, we received three. One
of these complaints has turned into a request to pay for damages done by the
client’s dog. After I got off the phone with this client my heart started to
become discouraged. There was a fear that started to rise in me and an
overwhelming sense of worry began to bubble up from the pit of my stomach. I
took a deep breath and I prayed, because I know Nehemiah would have done the
same thing.
All
throughout this adventure the Lord my God has brought me through the pages of
Nehemiah. He showed me how to build this company into what it is today by
taking me brick by brick through Nehemiah’s story. In less than two years my
God has grown my company from four pet sitters into 30 pet sitters and a scheduler,
serving five counties, and we are getting ready to expand even more. I have
been blessed over and over again by the work my God has done.
Not
only am I maintaining a profit, but we have been able to share the gospel with
our clients. We have been able to pray for them, pray with them and we have
seen God glorified through our efforts over and over again. Sometimes, I just
sit back in utter amazement! I don’t say all this to brag. I say this to make
you aware; aware of the attacks that are going to come, and believe me- they
will come.
When
you were in the world, living as the world, you went unnoticed by the devil. He
couldn’t see you because you were cloaked in his darkness. You looked just like
everyone else in the world. But the moment you became a Christian, you no
longer walked under that darkness. You became light. You are clearly seen now
by your enemy because now you shine.
My
company has been a complete work of God. I can take no credit for any of it. I
have obeyed and followed His leading through prayer and His Word, and we have
surpassed all expectations. The world told me not to expect to make any money
at this, not in the first few years. No business makes a profit the first year.
But my CPA sits in awe and amazement at the growth and the profits we show consistently,
each and every month. He once told me that what is taking place within this
company is unheard of. It had to be the work of God because in all his years as
a CPA he has never seen anything like it. But with success comes spiritual
attack. When God is working for you, the enemy will work against you.
“But when Sanballat and Tobiah and the Arabs
and the Ammonites and the Ashodites heard that the repairing of the walls of
Jerusalem was going forward and that the breaches were beginning to be closed they
were very angry. And they all plotted together to come and fight against
Jerusalem and to cause confusion in it. And we prayed to our God and set a
guard as a protection against them day and night……So in the lowest parts of the
space behind the wall, in open places, I stationed the people by their clans,
with their swords, their spears and their bows. And I looked and arose and said
to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people. ‘Do not be
afraid of them. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your
brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives and your homes.’” Nehemiah
4:7-9, 13-14 ESV
Sanballat
and Tobiah led the charge against the children of Israel. The hand of God was
upon the rebuilding and this made the enemy mad. The more the people worked,
the less hold Sanballat and Tobiah had. So they set out to find weaknesses so
they could tear it down. One thing the Lord has taught me in this business, as
well as in my personal life, is that I must continually examine my defenses. In
Nehemiah 2, Nehemiah inspects the wall and determines the amount of work it’s
going to take. He sees the weaknesses and he sets his heart to fix them.
We
must take a step back from time to time and look for weaknesses in our own
lives, as well as in our businesses. Nehemiah writes that the lowest parts of
the space behind the wall and the open places were vulnerable to attack so he
set the people there to defend it. He made the necessary adjustments to sure
them up and make them strong again. Just a few days ago I was getting that
unsettling feeling that things were not right with the business. I needed to
inspect and regroup the walls that were protecting us. God was preparing me for
the battle, I just wasn’t aware of it yet.
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I
also want you to notice what else Nehemiah did that is imperative to our lives,
personal and professional. Nehemiah prayed. In verse 9 Nehemiah and the people
with him prayed to God. We must be people of prayer if we are going to have any
success in this life. Prayer is the most powerful weapon we have, yet the least
used of them all. Prayer is crucial to life itself. Not only did they pray, but
they also set a guard up and protected themselves against the attack that was
headed their way. They were aware there was vulnerabilities and they did what
they had to do to protect them from the pending attack.
Our
God will fight for us. When these attacks come, and they will come- pray. Pray
and give the worry, fear and doubts to Him. This business is not mine, it’s His
and the work that He is doing through it, He will defend. Our lives are filled
with trials, struggles and attacks of the enemy but we have nothing to fear.
God is sovereign. Everything that happens to us has passed through His hands of
approval. This fiery trial has come upon us because He has allowed it. He has
prepared you for such a time as this. He has not brought you this far to leave
you stranded now.
God
is calling me to stand guard, to station myself and those who work for me so
that we can keep doing the work He has set before us. We must tighten up and
sure up these walls. I have nothing to be afraid of because my Lord, who is
great and awesome, fights for me. He fights for you. Don’t let the enemy come
against you unaware. But stand guard and firm up those areas of your life that
are vulnerable. Pray, inspect, guard and stand my friend. The attacks will
come, but our God will fight for us, and don’t forget, He has already overcome
the world! Amen?
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