Month: May 2019

“Sanballat was very angry when he learned that we were rebuilding the wall. He flew into a rage and mocked the Jews, saying in front of his friends and the Samarian army officers, “What does this bunch of poor, feeble Jews think they’re doing? Do they think they can build the wall in a single day by just offering a few sacrifices? Do they actually think they can make something of stones from a rubbish heap—and charred ones at that?” Nehemiah‬ ‭4:1-2‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My past two posts have been centered on building a business, project or something (could be your life, home, a house or anything personal). We have looked at ventures to take a note of when building in the first post. Last week, we dealt with battles to overcome when building. Today’s focus is on blocks needed in building. 

I want us to look at this biblical account of a Jewish man called Nehemiah who served as a cup bearer to Artaxerxes, King of Persia. A cup bearer was one who served wine in a palace and also a wine taster for the King. He got wind of what had happened in Judah; the walls of Jerusalem had been torn down and its gates also destroyed by fire. Nehemiah made it his life mission to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem. There are some pointers we can glean from this story on building. Although, this was in the context of building a wall, the principles have a universal application 

Block 1: turn to God

“Then I prayed, “Hear us, our God, for we are being mocked…” Nehemiah‬ ‭4:4‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Undergoing any building venture is very tough and trying. Like I alluded in my last two posts, man was not designed to build things by himself, but by the help of God. Nehemiah had a huge task ahead of him and opposition. People were mocking at him. Nehemiah’s first response to his opposition was to turn to God in prayer. Your first and primary building block should be praying to God for assistance and wisdom to build and complete. I don’t know your faith or beliefs, but may I encourage you to develop the habit of praying to God who is as real as the person next to you. Not only that, but yearn to have a deeper spiritual experience with God. I can talk confidently like this in a politically correct world because of a personal, real experience 

““This is GOD ’s Message, the God who made earth, made it livable and lasting, known everywhere as GOD: ‘Call to me and I will answer you. I’ll tell you marvelous and wondrous things that you could never figure out on your own.’” ‭‭Jeremiah‬ ‭33:2-3‬ ‭MSG‬‬

Reader, God is calling you into fellowship. He wants you to call him in prayer and He will answer you. Believe it and try it, even if this concept is alien to you

Block 2: have a mind to work

“So we built the wall, and the entire wall was joined together up to half its height, for the people had a mind to work.” ‭‭Nehemiah‬ ‭4:6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Building has two phases: the time to draw your envisioned plans on paper and then the working part. Many people can’t build because they have not moved beyond the drawing board. They are in love with what they have drawn thinking whatever they are involved in will materialize. There is no “abracadabra” involved in building but purely hard, hard work. Building mostly requires double of the work you will do. If it was easy, everyone will be a builder. Building has no time for wishful thinking. Building only understand four letters: W-O-R-K. Draw, plan, strategize, have think tank meetings, but a time comes when you will have to fold your sleeves to your elbow and get to the job. That is the only legitimate way you can put up a structure, be it a business or your own personal project, say, finishing an academic course

Block 3: be on guard

“… because of them we set a watch against them day and night.” Nehemiah‬ ‭4:9‬ ‭NKJV‬

The context of this verse was Nehemiah set a watch or stationed guards against the enemies who were hellbent on seeing to it that the wall will not be completed. That is wisdom. He built and fought at the same time. Most never finish anything because they grossly underestimate the level of competition. You can’t succeed in the corporate world if you go in naively thinking everybody is for you and your friend. There are serious levels of competition and opposition EVERYWHERE that you will truly have to step your game up. Nehemiah was not naive; he stationed guards to ensure he will complete his assignment. Understand you have two levels of opposition in everything you do. You have internal which has to do with your psyche (mind) or how you are feeling (emotions), then you have the external opposition which comes in the form of people. Wisdom will demand you place a guard or set a watch on these levels of opposition, else you ain’t building nothing 

My prayer is we will take time to carefully ponder and meditate on these truths so that our profiting will be evident to all. Wish you the best of God’s grace in whatever your hands are currently involved in 

Please I will like to read your comments. Your feedback means a lot to me and don’t forget to like, subscribe and share

Till I come your way again…

Peace & Love

Last week, we spoke on the complexity of building something- it could be a business or a personal project. We talked on some ventures to watch out when building. We also touched on how difficult it is to be involved in a startup mission. Building requires tenacity because they will be many battles along the way you will have to fight through to ensure it is done. It might be tough but it must be done. I pray this inspires you to keep keeping on at all cost.

There are some distractive forces if not dealt with can be destructive. I am sure most of us can relate to these. It is not anything new but every now and then, we need to be informed to take caution. As they say, “the best defense is a good offense”. Let us consider these as we journey along

1. Discouragement– nobody will believe in you at first. It takes consistency and persistence to gain the trust and approval of people. You will have to travel the long haul for that. You will find out that people are not as enthused and don’t care about what you are passionate about. Majority sit on the fence with the “let’s wait and see” posture. Many things will not work right initially; it will not go according to what you have drawn on paper or imagined in your mind’s eye. Stick to it and win this battle. In my humble opinion, I think this is the biggest hurdle to jump over (I could be wrong) when on a startup assignment 

2. Postponement– when you start postponing stuff, it is a sure sign you are either discouraged or lazy. It has to be one of these two all the time. When we listen to our naysayers, Google search the statistics of what we are involved in and sometimes listen to the “experts” (I respect them but they can be wrong) truth be told, it gets hopeless. You will tend to lose your zeal and desire. Postponement is akin to abandoning the project. Let me add this: when starting anything, factor in a lot of hard, hard work. People get surprised when they are faced with the reality of a difficult build. That alone can demotivate you to shift it to “tomorrow”

3. Delay- when embarking on a personal project, budget your heart for disappointments, delays and detours. Life will be fun and easy peasy if everything goes according to what we have drawn on the flip chart or discussed in the boardroom. Sometimes, having  a counseling session with one you consider a sage will still not prevent these detours. I used to be astounded at delays. Personally this was a tough battle for me but with time, age, experience, wisdom and also prayer, I have gotten better at that. You may expect in a month ideally for the chips to fall in place, but realistically it will take a year for that to happen. How will you handle an unscheduled eleven month delay?

4. Laziness– sometimes laziness happens not because it is a personal habit of yours, but when you have been beaten so much and lost the battle against discouragement, postponement and delay. This is the mode one can find him or herself in. A wise man once remarked, “When you have no destiny helpers, life portrays you as a lazy man”. So unfair but true. I pray for you that you will find the right people, surround yourself with the right voices. They don’t have to be in the majority. Laziness starts mentally; when you have no fresh ideas or no plan Bs- you find it exhausting to think. It will then manifest in the actions and posture of your body 

“Then he hung the curtains forming the courtyard around the Tabernacle and the altar. And he set up the curtain at the entrance of the courtyard. So at last Moses finished the work. Then the cloud covered the Tabernacle, and the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.” Exodus‬ ‭40:33-34‬ ‭NLT‬‬

My prayer for you is that you will finish what you started. Overcome every impediment that wants to halt the growth and speed to what you are doing. There is a glory that descends on completed projects.

Please l will like to read your comments. Your feedback means a lot to me and don’t forget to like, share and subscribe

Till I come you way again…

Peace & Love