Don’t Let Satan Distract You
Nehemiah 6:3
3 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 and go down to you?”
Has God ever called you to do something, and the moment that you started to be obedient to His call, you were bombarded with obstacles and challenges from every direction? I can honestly say that this has happened to me numerous times, and I am sure that I am not alone.
The first thing that we may think when this happens is, maybe this is not what I am supposed to be doing right now, or maybe I misunderstood what God was calling me to do. Isn’t it funny how things can be so crystal clear to us one minute and the next minute we are second-guessing ourselves? We allow Satan to plant his little devious seeds of doubt and fear in our heads.
Well, I have finally figured out that the enemy knows, that if he can twist and distort the truth, or if he can throw enough obstacles at us, we will either doubt, become afraid, or become overwhelmed. Any one of these three will totally cause us to lose our focus in regards to what God has called us to do if we are not careful.
You see what God has called you to do, is still what He has called you to do, regardless of the chain of events that happen after the call. If it’s truly from God, nothing has changed but our minds, and that’s because we have allowed Satan to play his little tricks on us. This is exactly what he did to Eve in the garden when He twisted the truth and she started to doubt what she clearly heard God say.
One of my favorite Bible characters is Nehemiah. I love Nehemiah’s ability to stay on task and not allow the enemy to derail his work. Satan tried to hinder the work that God had called Nehemiah to do. The wall surrounding Jerusalem had been destroyed, and the gates had been ruined by fire, when Nehemiah heard this, his heart was broken and he wept for his city and for his people.
God put the plans in his heart to go to Jerusalem and rebuild the wall. When his enemies heard that he had started the process of rebuilding the wall they were furious! They started trying to intimidate and distract him, in order to stop the work that God had called him to do. They spread rumors and even plotted to harm Nehemiah.
His enemies asked him five times to come down from his work on the wall and talk to them, and he would not do it. Four times they sent the same message and on the fifth time, they sent an open letter. I love Nehemiah’s response in Nehemiah 6:3:
“ 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 and go down to you?”
Nehemiah was a man that was very clear on what he was called to do, and he was purposefully working towards the vision that had been placed in his heart by God. He would not allow himself to be distracted by those who did not have the same vision and purpose that he had. He did not fall for Satan’s schemes.
Today I want to encourage you to have the focus and determination of Nehemiah. Don’t allow the enemy to distract you. Remember he finds joy in discouraging those that God has called to be His hands and feet. Satan loves to hinder and frustrate God’s work, by frustrating his workers, so remember to stay strong and stay focused. Don’t be distracted!
