God, Our Helper

It's a lot of work rebuilding the ruins of a ransacked city. That's the situation that Ezra, Nehemiah, and the other returning Israelites found themselves in when Darius not only let them return to Jerusalem, but enabled their restoration project as they tried to rebuild the city and the Temple. 

Jerusalem was destroyed. Totally devastated. The walls were crushed. The Temple was nothing but rubble. Everywhere you looked, there were splinters of what used to be, broken bricks and broken dreams. Looking at it, it has to be overwhelming. Where do you even start when it doesn't look like there is one single block left on top of another anywhere in the vicinity? How do you start when the people who are in the ruined city, living in the crumbling facades of once-glorious houses, are against you? 

How do you rebuild Jerusalem when you're just a small, ragtag remnant of exiles trying to return home? 

You start by realizing you're not just a small, ragtag remnant of exiles; you're a small, ragtag remnant of the people of God. 

And the Lord is with you. 

And God is never going to call you to a work He's not going to help you with. 

In fact, Nehemiah tells us that's the only reason their rebuilding project succeeded, and it was so obvious that God Himself was part of the work that even the peoples around them, those who opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem and who didn't even believe in the Lord God of Israel, could draw no other conclusion than that God helped the returning exiles in their work. 

When our enemies hear the work was complete and the surrounding nations saw our wall, their confidence crumbled. Only one possible conclusion could be drawn: it was not just our efforts that had done this thing. God had been working alongside us. (Nehemiah 6:16)

And God works alongside you. 

Whatever He's called you to, however big it seems, however impossible it looks, when you're surrounded by rubble and ashes and it doesn't seem there is even one block left on top of another anywhere in your sight, God works with you to build what He's building. His hand is so obvious that even the world, even your enemies, can't deny that it had to be Him. 

So do the work, whatever it is. 

And know that you do not labor alone.