When Nehemiah first saw the ruins of Jerusalem, he wept. Then he rolled up his sleeves and went to work. In the face of overwhelming odds and relentless opposition, he rebuilt the walls in just fifty-two days. How? Because he was driven by vision and passion. How many times have we been afraid to say, ‘Lord, I’ll do anything You want me to do,’ in case He sends us somewhere we don’t want to go, or asks us to do something we don’t feel ready or qualified to do? There’s something about giving up our control that can make us feel really uncomfortable. But God’s will for us is the best thing for our lives. The Bible says God’s will is ‘good, pleasing and perfect’ (Romans 12:2 NIV). It doesn’t necessarily mean it’s easy, but it’s definitely good and He’ll give us a passion for it. When Jeremiah tried to stop speaking about the Lord, he said God’s Word became ‘like a fire shut up in my bones’ (Jeremiah 20:9 NASB). A God-given vision sets our hearts on fire. We begin to see things we never saw before and get excited about them. We may have failed in the past, but God can take our chapters of failure and turn them into a story of success. The Bible says, ‘Do not merely listen to the word…Do what it says.’ When God shows us His will for our lives, we not only need to listen, but also act on it. Once we’re actively trying to do His will, we then become passionate about doing it. We find purpose for our lives and realise that we didn’t need to be afraid to follow God’s call because He really does have it all under control.
