The Punch We Don't See Coming.

They say it’s the punch that you don’t see coming that knocks you down, so the question should be, “why don’t we see it coming?”

In a previous post, we looked at opposition to accomplishing task God places within our spirit to accomplish, and how the real opposition comes often before the opposition that we are expecting. David's brothers demonstrated how opposition often comes from those that mean the most to us. Goliath was not the biggest threat on the battlefield, it was David's own family.

Over the last few weeks, I have been writing a lot about overcoming opposition on the Christian journey and have looked to see this illustrated beautifully in the life of Nehemiah.

He has been given a message of comfort to bring to God’s people in the rebuilding the walls of their homeland that the enemy had destroyed, and it is through this event that I find encouragement in the oppositions that I face in living out my purpose in the Christian life. Why does it appear whenever you make steps in speaking your life’s message that opposition presents itself without fail? Fierce. Relentless.

I find right off the bat that the opposition Nehemiah faced was not in a small size. His endeavor attracted the attention of kings. Why would kings work so hard to stop a cup bearer?

The cup bearer is never the issue and never has been. The issue is and always will be the message.

The magnitude of the opposition will reflect the need for the message.

Your message from God will never be without opposition, and it will always attract the attention of the adversary. Size does indeed matter because when you face a large amount of opposition, the need for your specific message is equally large.

When opposition seems to come in a large force, please understand that this reflects a large need for the message that is being opposed. The need for your message can be forgotten when your focus is shifted to the size of your opposition, so it is important that you secure your thoughts before your opposition arrives.

In order to combat the opposition with success, we must change our belief systems.

Nehemiah needed to combat a belief system before he could face Sanballat and Tobiah (Two kings that opposed his message).

He started with a mentality that expressed, “...I was a cupbearer.”~ Nehemiah 1:11, but by the time that he finished, he had changed from cup bearer to a leader that could look a crowd of torn up, battered and discouraged people in the eye and say:“...God WILL help us...” ~ Nehemiah 2:20  

Who is this talking to kings? Is this the cup bearer from the palace?

Nehemiah had transformed in his thinking. Opposition cannot stand against a message carried by a messenger who is aware of his or her identity and the importance of a delivered message. When you understand the significance of your message, then you understand your message was given to you, along with the authority to deliver that message. 

Opposition has NO authority over your message.  

The adversary can only INFLUENCE. 

The only weapon that the adversary actually has to fight your mind with is the weapon of influence. The message has AUTHORITY. Never allow the adversary to influence you into trading or giving up your God given authority or message. Your message qualifies you for your assignment.

The journey will always bring you places where you will be directly challenged in your message and in those places, you must continually go back to your belief in the message that started the journey. 

It was no longer a cup bearer leading the people to rebuild, it was a born leader!

You are no longer just a dad, mom, employee, stay-at-home parent, employer, soldier, college student or whatever title that comes to mind when you think of yourself in the face of opposition. You are a messenger with a divine purpose. You have been given authority and precision placement in your assignment. Walk in that purpose and be on mission with Christ in rebuilding hearts and lives that have been destroyed!

~ Daniel