Your story is a preparation for your present. We need to be ready for open doors with a plan, but also knowing there will be opposition today. More from the bold leadership of Nehemiah.

Your story is a preparation for your present. We need to be ready for open doors with a plan, but also knowing there will be opposition today. More from the bold leadership of Nehemiah.

The favor of God will open unexpected doors, but remember that opposition will quickly follow. Not everybody wants you to rebuild the ruins. Opposition will quickly follow.

The favor of God will open unexpected doors, but remember that opposition will quickly follow. Not everybody wants you to rebuild the ruins. Opposition will quickly follow.

Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. We're all about rebuilding in our current series as we continue our study of the leadership of Nehemiah. As the story unfolds and we compare his job with our own rebuilding efforts. We might not be restoring a whole city, but there's so much we can draw from when we look at the choices and decisions he made in preparation. That applies to our lives today. Now, if you'd like to hear part one of this message or get caught up, go to Bold Steps. Org. So join us in Nehemiah chapter two as we continue with the message The Hand of God. Here's Mark Jobe with today's bold steps.

Welcome to Bold Steps with Mark Jobe, president of Moody Bible Institute and senior pastor of New Life Community Church in Chicago. We're all about rebuilding in our current series as we continue our study of the leadership of Nehemiah. As the story unfolds and we compare his job with our own rebuilding efforts. We might not be restoring a whole city, but there's so much we can draw from when we look at the choices and decisions he made in preparation. That applies to our lives today. Now, if you'd like to hear part one of this message or get caught up, go to Bold Steps. Org. So join us in Nehemiah chapter two as we continue with the message The Hand of God. Here's Mark Jobe with today's bold steps.

Life is lived looking forward, but it's understood as we look backwards. Are you tracking with me? You understand life looking forward. That's how you live it. But you really comprehend what's going on as you look backward. I see it in my own life. I never thought if you were to ask me in college. Hey, what are you going to be doing 20 some years from now? I'm 43 years old. If you were to ask me when I was 18 years old. Hey, do you think you'll be in Chicago? Do you think you'll be planting churches? Do you think you'll be doing a ministry? I would have said, are you crazy? No way. When I was about 18, 19 years old, I was thinking about the medical field. God got a hold of me. Then a little bit later, I was thinking I was going to go back to Europe. I lived in Europe, grew up in in Europe. That's where I planned to go. I didn't like Chicago, didn't want to be in Chicago. But yet I look back and I say, God was preparing my heart years ago for what I'm doing right now, you see? How's that? Well, you know what? When I was six months old, my parents moved to Costa Rica to learn the Spanish language, and then they moved to Chile. And my father got involved in planting churches in some rustic places in the mountains of Chile. When I was six years old, they moved to Spain and began to plant churches in Spanish speaking language in the country of Spain. And when I was 17, I came to Chicago to go to school. Not because I wanted to be in Chicago, but because God orchestrated it. And so I was bilingual. Growing up, little did I know that 20 some years later, we would be in Chicago, that four of our congregations would be Spanish speaking. Little did I know that as God was moving me from country to country, I lived in France for a while. Worked here, worked there. Little did I know that our ministry would be multi-ethnic, multicultural, diverse in the city of Chicago. Little did I know that as God was bringing me to school in Chicago, that God was preparing me to stay in Chicago. Little did I know that little did I know. As I was watching my father plant churches and start works, that God would actually use that to help me begin to plant and start other works in the future. Little did I know that what I was living through, God was actually preparing me for what I'm currently doing right here and right now. Isn't it amazing? Little did I know that God was giving me an education to do exactly what I'm doing right now. I didn't understand that, I didn't know. Hey. Guess what? Guess what I studied right now. Uh, God opened the doors about a year and a half ago to start a radio program. You know what? I studied somewhat in college? Audiovisual communications. Little did I know. In fact, I got out of the field. I said, I'm never going to use this. This is just. Little did I know that I would be an audio visual communications a few years later. You see, I didn't know all that. But God was using pieces in my history and my puzzle to prepare me for what I'm doing right now. And every single one of you, I believe, has a similar story. If you were to look at your past and trace what God, how how you've gotten to the point that you're at your story is a preparation for your present, and God will use it in your future if you allow him to use it. You see, in Nehemiah you looked at him. He didn't think much about what he was doing, but yet little did he know that God had prepared him to get the ear of the King, that God was orchestrating circumstances so that as a Jewish individual son of slaves, that he would grow up in the palace and know very intimately the workings of the King, and have favor with the King, and have a Jewish background, so that one day he could go back to Jerusalem with the resources and blessing and authority of a non-Jewish king to build the city of Jerusalem. Little did he know what God was doing in his life. Look back at your life and begin to understand how God has prepared you for what you are currently doing. Thirdly, I want you to jot this down. When God opens doors, be ready to walk through them prepared with a specific plan. You see, it tells us in Scripture that then the King and the Queen sitting beside him. By the way, it's interesting. Some scholars believe that Artaxerxes wife, when it says the queen was actually Queen Esther. If you read the Book of Esther, she was raised to a prominent position as a Jewish woman, even though the king didn't know he was. She was Jewish when he married her as a Jewish woman, and at a real heart for her people. And some scholars believe that this is actually Queen Esther. Or if it's not Queen Esther, then it was Artaxerxes father or grandfather that had actually married Queen Queen Esther, because they're contemporaries of that time. Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, how long will your journey take and when will you get back? And it pleased the king to send me. So I set a time. And then I said to him, if it pleases the King, may I have letters to the governors of the trans Euphrates, so that they will provide a safe conduct until I arrive in Judah. Give me a passport, and I may have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest. So he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, and for the city wall, and for the residents that I occupy, and give me all the construction material that I need to rebuild Jerusalem. And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the King granted my request. Now here's what I want. I wish you could hear me this morning. All because I can't preach it good enough for you to hear it well. A lot of us spend a lot of time asking for open doors, but very little time figuring out what we're going to do when God actually opens those doors. Some of you young men, you've been praying for five years. Oh, God. Give me a wife. Oh, Lord, I really need a good one. Please, Lord. A wife, my wife. I need a wife. You know, Lord, I, you you. I've prayed, I'm fasted, I've pursued. Open the doors. Every church service you go into, every evangelistic meeting you go into, you go to the first service saying, Lord, is she here? Show me a sign. And you kind of think there's going to be a little heavenly arrow, this one, this one, this one. So you go to the second service. Lord, maybe she doesn't come to the first service. I missed her, she's in the second service. Some of you don't even speak Spanish. But you're going to the Spanish service thinking, oh, Lord, maybe she's in the Spanish service. Give me the gift of interpretation. Or the gift of tongues. Lord, because I really need a wife. And you've been praying so hard, so long, so, so intently for a wife. But hold on. Time out, time out. I'm glad you want an open door for wife. But don't you think you should get a job? Excuse me, young man. Don't you think like you should move out of your mother's house? Hey, I know you want a wife, but. But don't you think you should get your act together a bit? Don't you think you should save a little money so that if you actually get married, you're not going to have to ask her dad to pay the bills for the wedding and get a loan to get a wedding ring. Hey, excuse me, young man of God, that's great that you're getting married, but I don't think she's going to fit on the back of your bicycle. Maybe you should get a car that she could ride in. Hey, here's the point, folks. Sometimes we pray for an open door, but we're not prepared for the door that God opens for us. We don't get ready for that open door. We're not prepared for the things that we're praying for. We're asking for an open door, but we're not ready. If God were to throw open that door, we're really not ready for the opportunities that God provides for us. And don't tell me that you're walking by faith, because here's what I find that often times in the Christian subculture, that faith, the word faith is used as an excuse for laziness, disorganization, and being ill prepared for what God brings in our direction? So what are you going to do, brother? I was just going by faith. What are you going to live on? Faith? Let's just call it what it is. You're ill prepared. You haven't planned. You're not ready. Don't blame it on God and faith. Just say, hey, I take responsibility. I dropped the ball, man, I overspent. I have no budget. I'm not really ready. Face it for what it is. If God opens the door, you need to be ready and prepared and in place and have things and have a plan. Because here's what happened. The king said, Nehemiah, what do you need? And I tell you, Nehemiah said, I'm glad you asked. He pulls out his list. You know, by the way, can I get a pack? Can I get a letter from you to do this? And I need timber for this. And he had been thinking about this. He had a plan. He had something in his mind that was going to happen.

Life is lived looking forward, but it's understood as we look backwards. Are you tracking with me? You understand life looking forward. That's how you live it. But you really comprehend what's going on as you look backward. I see it in my own life. I never thought if you were to ask me in college. Hey, what are you going to be doing 20 some years from now? I'm 43 years old. If you were to ask me when I was 18 years old. Hey, do you think you'll be in Chicago? Do you think you'll be planting churches? Do you think you'll be doing a ministry? I would have said, are you crazy? No way. When I was about 18, 19 years old, I was thinking about the medical field. God got a hold of me. Then a little bit later, I was thinking I was going to go back to Europe. I lived in Europe, grew up in in Europe. That's where I planned to go. I didn't like Chicago, didn't want to be in Chicago. But yet I look back and I say, God was preparing my heart years ago for what I'm doing right now, you see? How's that? Well, you know what? When I was six months old, my parents moved to Costa Rica to learn the Spanish language, and then they moved to Chile. And my father got involved in planting churches in some rustic places in the mountains of Chile. When I was six years old, they moved to Spain and began to plant churches in Spanish speaking language in the country of Spain. And when I was 17, I came to Chicago to go to school. Not because I wanted to be in Chicago, but because God orchestrated it. And so I was bilingual. Growing up, little did I know that 20 some years later, we would be in Chicago, that four of our congregations would be Spanish speaking. Little did I know that as God was moving me from country to country, I lived in France for a while. Worked here, worked there. Little did I know that our ministry would be multi-ethnic, multicultural, diverse in the city of Chicago. Little did I know that as God was bringing me to school in Chicago, that God was preparing me to stay in Chicago. Little did I know that little did I know. As I was watching my father plant churches and start works, that God would actually use that to help me begin to plant and start other works in the future. Little did I know that what I was living through, God was actually preparing me for what I'm currently doing right here and right now. Isn't it amazing? Little did I know that God was giving me an education to do exactly what I'm doing right now. I didn't understand that, I didn't know. Hey. Guess what? Guess what I studied right now. Uh, God opened the doors about a year and a half ago to start a radio program. You know what? I studied somewhat in college? Audiovisual communications. Little did I know. In fact, I got out of the field. I said, I'm never going to use this. This is just. Little did I know that I would be an audio visual communications a few years later. You see, I didn't know all that. But God was using pieces in my history and my puzzle to prepare me for what I'm doing right now. And every single one of you, I believe, has a similar story. If you were to look at your past and trace what God, how how you've gotten to the point that you're at your story is a preparation for your present, and God will use it in your future if you allow him to use it. You see, in Nehemiah you looked at him. He didn't think much about what he was doing, but yet little did he know that God had prepared him to get the ear of the King, that God was orchestrating circumstances so that as a Jewish individual son of slaves, that he would grow up in the palace and know very intimately the workings of the King, and have favor with the King, and have a Jewish background, so that one day he could go back to Jerusalem with the resources and blessing and authority of a non-Jewish king to build the city of Jerusalem. Little did he know what God was doing in his life. Look back at your life and begin to understand how God has prepared you for what you are currently doing. Thirdly, I want you to jot this down. When God opens doors, be ready to walk through them prepared with a specific plan. You see, it tells us in Scripture that then the King and the Queen sitting beside him. By the way, it's interesting. Some scholars believe that Artaxerxes wife, when it says the queen was actually Queen Esther. If you read the Book of Esther, she was raised to a prominent position as a Jewish woman, even though the king didn't know he was. She was Jewish when he married her as a Jewish woman, and at a real heart for her people. And some scholars believe that this is actually Queen Esther. Or if it's not Queen Esther, then it was Artaxerxes father or grandfather that had actually married Queen Queen Esther, because they're contemporaries of that time. Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, how long will your journey take and when will you get back? And it pleased the king to send me. So I set a time. And then I said to him, if it pleases the King, may I have letters to the governors of the trans Euphrates, so that they will provide a safe conduct until I arrive in Judah. Give me a passport, and I may have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the king's forest. So he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple, and for the city wall, and for the residents that I occupy, and give me all the construction material that I need to rebuild Jerusalem. And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the King granted my request. Now here's what I want. I wish you could hear me this morning. All because I can't preach it good enough for you to hear it well. A lot of us spend a lot of time asking for open doors, but very little time figuring out what we're going to do when God actually opens those doors. Some of you young men, you've been praying for five years. Oh, God. Give me a wife. Oh, Lord, I really need a good one. Please, Lord. A wife, my wife. I need a wife. You know, Lord, I, you you. I've prayed, I'm fasted, I've pursued. Open the doors. Every church service you go into, every evangelistic meeting you go into, you go to the first service saying, Lord, is she here? Show me a sign. And you kind of think there's going to be a little heavenly arrow, this one, this one, this one. So you go to the second service. Lord, maybe she doesn't come to the first service. I missed her, she's in the second service. Some of you don't even speak Spanish. But you're going to the Spanish service thinking, oh, Lord, maybe she's in the Spanish service. Give me the gift of interpretation. Or the gift of tongues. Lord, because I really need a wife. And you've been praying so hard, so long, so, so intently for a wife. But hold on. Time out, time out. I'm glad you want an open door for wife. But don't you think you should get a job? Excuse me, young man. Don't you think like you should move out of your mother's house? Hey, I know you want a wife, but. But don't you think you should get your act together a bit? Don't you think you should save a little money so that if you actually get married, you're not going to have to ask her dad to pay the bills for the wedding and get a loan to get a wedding ring. Hey, excuse me, young man of God, that's great that you're getting married, but I don't think she's going to fit on the back of your bicycle. Maybe you should get a car that she could ride in. Hey, here's the point, folks. Sometimes we pray for an open door, but we're not prepared for the door that God opens for us. We don't get ready for that open door. We're not prepared for the things that we're praying for. We're asking for an open door, but we're not ready. If God were to throw open that door, we're really not ready for the opportunities that God provides for us. And don't tell me that you're walking by faith, because here's what I find that often times in the Christian subculture, that faith, the word faith is used as an excuse for laziness, disorganization, and being ill prepared for what God brings in our direction? So what are you going to do, brother? I was just going by faith. What are you going to live on? Faith? Let's just call it what it is. You're ill prepared. You haven't planned. You're not ready. Don't blame it on God and faith. Just say, hey, I take responsibility. I dropped the ball, man, I overspent. I have no budget. I'm not really ready. Face it for what it is. If God opens the door, you need to be ready and prepared and in place and have things and have a plan. Because here's what happened. The king said, Nehemiah, what do you need? And I tell you, Nehemiah said, I'm glad you asked. He pulls out his list. You know, by the way, can I get a pack? Can I get a letter from you to do this? And I need timber for this. And he had been thinking about this. He had a plan. He had something in his mind that was going to happen.

Have you thought ahead and make plans for when that door opens? This is bold steps. And that's our Bible teacher, Mark Jobe. Just a quick time out to welcome you to our daily broadcast. If you're new and we have new listeners joining us all the time, bold steps is also online at Bold steps.org, and you can even find us on your phone now by downloading Mark, our brand new Bold Steps app.

Have you thought ahead and make plans for when that door opens? This is bold steps. And that's our Bible teacher, Mark Jobe. Just a quick time out to welcome you to our daily broadcast. If you're new and we have new listeners joining us all the time, bold steps is also online at Bold steps.org, and you can even find us on your phone now by downloading Mark, our brand new Bold Steps app.

Hey Wayne, we're so excited about this! In fact, I have my smartphone in my hand right now and I'm browsing through the Bold Steps app. So many people have downloaded it already, and if you like to listen to bold steps and are trying to get Ahold of more of our resources, you have to download the app today.

Hey Wayne, we're so excited about this! In fact, I have my smartphone in my hand right now and I'm browsing through the Bold Steps app. So many people have downloaded it already, and if you like to listen to bold steps and are trying to get Ahold of more of our resources, you have to download the app today.

Your assignment for the day, huh?

Your assignment for the day, huh?

That's right. So all the audio programs that you hear via the radio or live streaming are on the app, but plus we have videos, resources. You can even see quite a few of the messages, uh, via video, in other words, in a video format. But we also have common questions that people ask about the Bible. We have all the resources that we put together the devotionals on there. You can even look at Bible verses there while you're listening to the messages. So this is a great resource. So just download it. Uh, just put, uh, just put Bold Steps app in a search engine and you will find it right away.

That's right. So all the audio programs that you hear via the radio or live streaming are on the app, but plus we have videos, resources. You can even see quite a few of the messages, uh, via video, in other words, in a video format. But we also have common questions that people ask about the Bible. We have all the resources that we put together the devotionals on there. You can even look at Bible verses there while you're listening to the messages. So this is a great resource. So just download it. Uh, just put, uh, just put Bold Steps app in a search engine and you will find it right away.

Certainly there must be a price involved here, Mark. Right.

Certainly there must be a price involved here, Mark. Right.

Yes. The price is.

Yes. The price is.

Free. Free. Our bold step partners have actually paid for the development of this app. And we're very appreciative to you. So go to your respective app store. And as Mark said search for the Bold Steps app. All right. Let's get back to the message now. The hand of God and how to balance our plans with trust in trusting God. Here's Mark with bold steps.

Free. Free. Our bold step partners have actually paid for the development of this app. And we're very appreciative to you. So go to your respective app store. And as Mark said search for the Bold Steps app. All right. Let's get back to the message now. The hand of God and how to balance our plans with trust in trusting God. Here's Mark with bold steps.

Over the years, I've grown a little wiser, and I have to admit that in my younger days, you know, I was sometimes said I was moving in faith, but I was just ill prepared for life. Maybe that's why for the first four months of my marriage, we slept on the floor because I didn't have a mattress. I didn't have a bed. Seriously? You say? Well, that was faith. No, that was foolishness. Ill prepared. Now there's a there's a definite tension between trusting God and our own plans. Now, James tells us that we are not to say, well, today I'm going to do this, tomorrow I'm going to do that. I'm going to make plans because you don't know if you have tomorrow. You need to say, if God wills, I will go and do this. So here's the tension between faith and our plans. If you depend and trust in your plans above God, then you are in sin. You need to. If you don't plan and simply say, I'm trusting God, you are walking in foolishness. So what we do is we prepare our plans to the best of our knowledge, and we invite God's presence and power into our plans, saying some trust in horses, some trust in chariots. But I will trust in the name of the Lord our God. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart. Lean not on their own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. You make your plans, but you invoke the presence and the power of God to to orchestrate your plans and to go ahead of you, because you can make the best plans in the world. But unless you invite God, there nothing. Amen. That's what it tells us in Psalms. And that's what it tells us in Proverbs. In fact, you might want to you might want to jot this verse down, jot this verse down. It tells us in Proverbs chapter 16, verse nine. It says in his heart a man plans his course, but God determines his steps. In Proverbs 1921 it says, many are the plans of man's heart, but it's the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 14 verse eight out of the living version I love this. It says, the wise man looks ahead. The fool attempts to fool himself and won't face the facts. I love that. So what I'm saying to you is that we need to plan ahead. We need to prepare for God what God opens. If God opens the door. Are you ready to begin to rebuild? Do you have a plan? Do you have something in place? And lastly, I want you to write this down. This is huge. The favor of God will open unexpected doors, but remember that opposition will quickly follow. Here's what I want you to understand. Not everybody wants you to rebuild the ruins. It tells us in verse ten when sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this. They were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. Some people have a vested interest in keeping you and your family, and your neighborhood and your city in ruins. Let me tell you something, young lady. Not everybody wants you to get your act together. You know that abusive, critical boyfriend that lives his life and calls you up when he's a little lonely for a little sex? You tell him that you're getting your life together. You tell him that you're going to church now. You tell them that your pastor said that you're a woman of dignity That you have value and worth, and that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. That you're not going to be sleeping with him like you used to sleep before. That you're not at his beck and call like some handmaiden or prostitute. Just. Ready for a call when he's lonely or when he wants you. That you've learned that you have an identity. That you have a value. That you have a dignity. That you have a worth and value that's much more than just the worth of value of whatever guy you're with, and that you have boundaries in your life, and that you can say no now and that you don't need him calling you up whenever he needs a little something. You tell him that and let me tell you, he won't be cheering. The fact that you are getting your life out of ruins and have some dignity and worth and value to your life, because he doesn't want you to reconstruct the ruins. He likes you a little dysfunctional. He wants you a little bit confused. He wants your dignity to be low. He wants you dependent. He's not cheering you and on and saying, yeah, I'm glad you're in a women's Bible study. Yay! I'm glad you're going to church. Yeah, get your act together. He's got a vested interest in keeping your life in ruins. Let me tell you something. Your creditors don't want you to start rebuilding your financial life. You know what? They make a good living off of the interest and high interest that you pay on your credit card account. They don't want you to get a budget. They don't want you to start getting out of debt. They don't want you to learn to start getting your finances together. They don't want you. They like you in ruins. Hey, your ex spouse isn't necessarily going to be cheering and saying rah rah, I'm glad you got your life together because you know, their life is a little bit of a mess. And so they're not so happy when you start getting your life in order. They're not saying yes, I'm glad they're prospering because misery loves company. Hey, the old boys from the neighborhood, when you start saying that you're getting your act together, that you've stopped hanging out at those low life bars and that you're not getting drunk every weekend and they don't call you up if they're looking to sell a line of cocaine, that you're not into that anymore, that you're cleaning up your act, that you're working a job, that you, that you don't just come to in the morning, but that you wake up in the morning and you don't knock out at night, but you go to sleep at night, that you're not in that addiction life anymore, that you're not perpetuating that life anymore. They're not going to be cheering you on and say, hey, yeah, I'm glad that you're getting your life out of ruins. Don't expect them to be the cheerleading crowd, because not everybody wants your life to get out of ruins. Some people like the way you are. Some people want you to stay the way you are. Some people want certain communities to be ghettos. Some people feed off of ghetto mentality. Some people could care less if 17 or 18 year old minority kids are being shot in the head because of some brutal gang violence and turn their heads, and it doesn't really matter that much to them. When we when we bought this old factory building that you're sitting in right now, this 80 400 zero square foot building, many people in the community were super excited that we were coming into this place. But there are people that rose up in vehement opposition that we would turn this old factory into a community center, church and a place that ministers to the community. And I was flabbergasted. Why would someone be opposed that we would buy a building for $2 million and try to rehab it for a couple other million dollars to benefit this community. Why would someone be opposed to that? I can't understand it. You know what they said at community, at the community meetings. We're going to have traffic problems on Sunday morning. Have traffic problems? Is that the best argument that you can come up with? God has called you to be a rebuilder. Amen. And the moment you get up and dust yourself off and said, I've had enough of this. I will not let my life, my family, my community, my city lie in ruins. I've had enough of this. You get up, you dust yourself off a little and said, I'm going to start rebuilding. You start grabbing bricks, you start laying them one on the other, and I can guarantee you, oh, so help me God. I can guarantee you you will have people that will try to blow your bricks down. You will have people kicking dust in your face. You'll have people laughing at it and saying, oh, this looks like a real diddily of a job. You'll have people whining, complaining, breaking, criticizing, wanting you to stay in ruins. Because every time that God wants to rebuild, there will be people that will rise up. Some close to you, some far, some friends, some enemies, some family, some people you don't even know that will rise up and resist any work of God that tries to rebuild lives, families and communities. Just expect opposition so you might as well get used to it. And a rebuilder says, hey, I know I will be opposed, but by God's power and his name, I will rebuild.

Over the years, I've grown a little wiser, and I have to admit that in my younger days, you know, I was sometimes said I was moving in faith, but I was just ill prepared for life. Maybe that's why for the first four months of my marriage, we slept on the floor because I didn't have a mattress. I didn't have a bed. Seriously? You say? Well, that was faith. No, that was foolishness. Ill prepared. Now there's a there's a definite tension between trusting God and our own plans. Now, James tells us that we are not to say, well, today I'm going to do this, tomorrow I'm going to do that. I'm going to make plans because you don't know if you have tomorrow. You need to say, if God wills, I will go and do this. So here's the tension between faith and our plans. If you depend and trust in your plans above God, then you are in sin. You need to. If you don't plan and simply say, I'm trusting God, you are walking in foolishness. So what we do is we prepare our plans to the best of our knowledge, and we invite God's presence and power into our plans, saying some trust in horses, some trust in chariots. But I will trust in the name of the Lord our God. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart. Lean not on their own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. You make your plans, but you invoke the presence and the power of God to to orchestrate your plans and to go ahead of you, because you can make the best plans in the world. But unless you invite God, there nothing. Amen. That's what it tells us in Psalms. And that's what it tells us in Proverbs. In fact, you might want to you might want to jot this verse down, jot this verse down. It tells us in Proverbs chapter 16, verse nine. It says in his heart a man plans his course, but God determines his steps. In Proverbs 1921 it says, many are the plans of man's heart, but it's the Lord's purpose that prevails. Proverbs 14 verse eight out of the living version I love this. It says, the wise man looks ahead. The fool attempts to fool himself and won't face the facts. I love that. So what I'm saying to you is that we need to plan ahead. We need to prepare for God what God opens. If God opens the door. Are you ready to begin to rebuild? Do you have a plan? Do you have something in place? And lastly, I want you to write this down. This is huge. The favor of God will open unexpected doors, but remember that opposition will quickly follow. Here's what I want you to understand. Not everybody wants you to rebuild the ruins. It tells us in verse ten when sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this. They were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. Some people have a vested interest in keeping you and your family, and your neighborhood and your city in ruins. Let me tell you something, young lady. Not everybody wants you to get your act together. You know that abusive, critical boyfriend that lives his life and calls you up when he's a little lonely for a little sex? You tell him that you're getting your life together. You tell him that you're going to church now. You tell them that your pastor said that you're a woman of dignity That you have value and worth, and that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. That you're not going to be sleeping with him like you used to sleep before. That you're not at his beck and call like some handmaiden or prostitute. Just. Ready for a call when he's lonely or when he wants you. That you've learned that you have an identity. That you have a value. That you have a dignity. That you have a worth and value that's much more than just the worth of value of whatever guy you're with, and that you have boundaries in your life, and that you can say no now and that you don't need him calling you up whenever he needs a little something. You tell him that and let me tell you, he won't be cheering. The fact that you are getting your life out of ruins and have some dignity and worth and value to your life, because he doesn't want you to reconstruct the ruins. He likes you a little dysfunctional. He wants you a little bit confused. He wants your dignity to be low. He wants you dependent. He's not cheering you and on and saying, yeah, I'm glad you're in a women's Bible study. Yay! I'm glad you're going to church. Yeah, get your act together. He's got a vested interest in keeping your life in ruins. Let me tell you something. Your creditors don't want you to start rebuilding your financial life. You know what? They make a good living off of the interest and high interest that you pay on your credit card account. They don't want you to get a budget. They don't want you to start getting out of debt. They don't want you to learn to start getting your finances together. They don't want you. They like you in ruins. Hey, your ex spouse isn't necessarily going to be cheering and saying rah rah, I'm glad you got your life together because you know, their life is a little bit of a mess. And so they're not so happy when you start getting your life in order. They're not saying yes, I'm glad they're prospering because misery loves company. Hey, the old boys from the neighborhood, when you start saying that you're getting your act together, that you've stopped hanging out at those low life bars and that you're not getting drunk every weekend and they don't call you up if they're looking to sell a line of cocaine, that you're not into that anymore, that you're cleaning up your act, that you're working a job, that you, that you don't just come to in the morning, but that you wake up in the morning and you don't knock out at night, but you go to sleep at night, that you're not in that addiction life anymore, that you're not perpetuating that life anymore. They're not going to be cheering you on and say, hey, yeah, I'm glad that you're getting your life out of ruins. Don't expect them to be the cheerleading crowd, because not everybody wants your life to get out of ruins. Some people like the way you are. Some people want you to stay the way you are. Some people want certain communities to be ghettos. Some people feed off of ghetto mentality. Some people could care less if 17 or 18 year old minority kids are being shot in the head because of some brutal gang violence and turn their heads, and it doesn't really matter that much to them. When we when we bought this old factory building that you're sitting in right now, this 80 400 zero square foot building, many people in the community were super excited that we were coming into this place. But there are people that rose up in vehement opposition that we would turn this old factory into a community center, church and a place that ministers to the community. And I was flabbergasted. Why would someone be opposed that we would buy a building for $2 million and try to rehab it for a couple other million dollars to benefit this community. Why would someone be opposed to that? I can't understand it. You know what they said at community, at the community meetings. We're going to have traffic problems on Sunday morning. Have traffic problems? Is that the best argument that you can come up with? God has called you to be a rebuilder. Amen. And the moment you get up and dust yourself off and said, I've had enough of this. I will not let my life, my family, my community, my city lie in ruins. I've had enough of this. You get up, you dust yourself off a little and said, I'm going to start rebuilding. You start grabbing bricks, you start laying them one on the other, and I can guarantee you, oh, so help me God. I can guarantee you you will have people that will try to blow your bricks down. You will have people kicking dust in your face. You'll have people laughing at it and saying, oh, this looks like a real diddily of a job. You'll have people whining, complaining, breaking, criticizing, wanting you to stay in ruins. Because every time that God wants to rebuild, there will be people that will rise up. Some close to you, some far, some friends, some enemies, some family, some people you don't even know that will rise up and resist any work of God that tries to rebuild lives, families and communities. Just expect opposition so you might as well get used to it. And a rebuilder says, hey, I know I will be opposed, but by God's power and his name, I will rebuild.

God has called all of us to be rebuilders. But part of that forward progress means dealing with the inevitable pull of others to abandon the effort. Don't give in. This is bold steps with our Bible teacher, Mark Jobe and Mark, next time we're at the starting line with the official go ahead. Given we see how Nehemiah began the process of rebuilding the wall in the city of Jerusalem, no small task, was it? Tell us what we can look forward to in this message.

God has called all of us to be rebuilders. But part of that forward progress means dealing with the inevitable pull of others to abandon the effort. Don't give in. This is bold steps with our Bible teacher, Mark Jobe and Mark, next time we're at the starting line with the official go ahead. Given we see how Nehemiah began the process of rebuilding the wall in the city of Jerusalem, no small task, was it? Tell us what we can look forward to in this message.

Yeah. So Nehemiah is such a powerful, compelling story of a man that has a vision and a daunting task, but throws himself into it. So if you are pursuing a God given vision, if you're in a ministry, if you're trying to rebuild something, if you're trying to start something, if you're trying to persevere in something, there's a lot of lessons to learn. So we will be tomorrow talking about starting right. There's got to be a starting place. And Nehemiah started, it wasn't the end, but some of you need to take the first step and start what's been on your mind for a long time.

Yeah. So Nehemiah is such a powerful, compelling story of a man that has a vision and a daunting task, but throws himself into it. So if you are pursuing a God given vision, if you're in a ministry, if you're trying to rebuild something, if you're trying to start something, if you're trying to persevere in something, there's a lot of lessons to learn. So we will be tomorrow talking about starting right. There's got to be a starting place. And Nehemiah started, it wasn't the end, but some of you need to take the first step and start what's been on your mind for a long time.

I hope you can join us for that message next time. But before then, we invite you to visit our website and check out all of the special faith building resources we have available, like this month's unique edition of The Bold Step Gift. Have you ever asked the question, Where is God in my pain? Or looked around the church and wondered, is this how Christians are supposed to act? These are the types of questions Lina Abujamra struggled with when her faith was on the verge of collapse, and she shares her powerful journey of discovery and reconstruction in a book called fractured Faith. Through raw storytelling and biblical insights, she maps a courageous path for examining your faith emerging with renewed purpose and resolve. Don't let this transformative read pass you by. Request your copy of our Bold Step gift today. When you give a donation of any amount to support this ministry. Just go online to Bold Steps. Org or call us at 800. D.L. Moody that's.

I hope you can join us for that message next time. But before then, we invite you to visit our website and check out all of the special faith building resources we have available, like this month's unique edition of The Bold Step Gift. Have you ever asked the question, Where is God in my pain? Or looked around the church and wondered, is this how Christians are supposed to act? These are the types of questions Lina Abujamra struggled with when her faith was on the verge of collapse, and she shares her powerful journey of discovery and reconstruction in a book called fractured Faith. Through raw storytelling and biblical insights, she maps a courageous path for examining your faith emerging with renewed purpose and resolve. Don't let this transformative read pass you by. Request your copy of our Bold Step gift today. When you give a donation of any amount to support this ministry. Just go online to Bold Steps. Org or call us at 800. D.L. Moody that's.

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You can also send your gift through the mail. Of course, you can write to us at bold steps. 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60,610. And hey, if you'd enjoy listening to these Bible teachings while you're out for a walk or really anywhere on the go, be sure to subscribe to the Bold Steps podcast. You'll find us on most podcast apps like Apple, Spotify, and more by searching for bold steps with doctor Mark Jobe. We've heard from so many of you how much you enjoy listening through your podcast app, and if you haven't already, we encourage you to leave a comment and a five star review when you're there. I'm Wayne Shepherd signing off, and we'll see you back here tomorrow for the next message in our series, rebuild from the Book of Nehemiah. It's titled Starting Right and is coming up Wednesday on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.

You can also send your gift through the mail. Of course, you can write to us at bold steps. 820 North LaSalle Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois 60,610. And hey, if you'd enjoy listening to these Bible teachings while you're out for a walk or really anywhere on the go, be sure to subscribe to the Bold Steps podcast. You'll find us on most podcast apps like Apple, Spotify, and more by searching for bold steps with doctor Mark Jobe. We've heard from so many of you how much you enjoy listening through your podcast app, and if you haven't already, we encourage you to leave a comment and a five star review when you're there. I'm Wayne Shepherd signing off, and we'll see you back here tomorrow for the next message in our series, rebuild from the Book of Nehemiah. It's titled Starting Right and is coming up Wednesday on Bold Steps with Mark Jobe. Bold steps is a production of Moody Radio, a ministry of Moody Bible Institute.