God's Work

So the wall was finished in the twenty and fifth day
of the month Elul,in fifty and two days.
And it came to pass,
that when all our enemies heard thereof,
and all the heathen that were about us saw these things,
they were much cast down in their own eyes:
for they perceived that this work was wrought of our God.
Nehemiah 6.15-16

When a person obeys God great things result. God’s work is never pointless or ineffectual. Nehemiah worked very hard to rebuild the wall around Jerusalem. He persuaded the people to work together, then he personally supervised the daily work, he fed many of the workers, and took no pay for his efforts. But these are only the tasks visible in the secular realm. Nehemiah prayed for four months before beginning the rebuilding. During the rebuilding, he resisted the distractions and attempts to instill fear by the enemies of God. Much of Nehemiah’s works was not visible to those around him.

But God knew Nehemiah’s heart. God knew the dedication he brought to the work at hand. And when all was done, the enemy knew also. The enemies knew that their lord, the devourer, did not prevail. No, the work was done by OUR GOD, the creator of the heavens and the earth.

But wait, didn’t Nehemiah do the work? Didn’t he spend all that time in prayer? Wasn’t he the one standing in the hot sun to ensure that every detail was attended to? Nehemiah did the will of God. Without God nothing would have been accomplished. A work of a man, however impressive, will not dishearten our enemies. But the work of God, any work done by God, will cast our enemy into despair. No matter how small in appearance, when we do the work of God, He is glorified.