Fight For Your Family Series

The trouble with rubble is that it’s everywhere. And my guess is that your family has a ton of it. There’s probably some level of dysfunction in your home, a relative with a substance abuse problem, someone with a bitterness issue, husbands who are defensive (that would be me) and another with anger problems. It feels all too overwhelming sometimes because the Adversary’s attacks are relentless.

3. Fear. The enemies of the Lord’s work had struck fear in the hearts of God’s people and they felt like giving up. They are now surrounded by foes to the north, the south, the east and the west.

4 Ways to Fight For Your Family

Fatigue, frustration and fear can lead to fractures in your family. Let’s look briefly at four ways to fight for your family. Let’s say our motto again: Instead of fighting with my family, I will fight for my family.

1. Request God’s help. I’m reminded of an “Adventures in Odyssey” episode when this question is asked to some terrified kids, “Are we warriors or are we wimps?” The answer comes quickly, “We are wimps, sir.” It’s easy to feel like a wimp in the face of family struggles. Nehemiah requested God’s help in chapter one. In chapter two, he prayed a “popcorn prayer” while he was in the presence of the king. Now, in chapter four, he prays two different times. He looked up before launching out, he prayed before proceeding. Take a look at his first prayer in verse 4: “Hear us, O God, for we are despised.”

Notice that while the people prayed, they also prepared. Check out verse 9: “But we prayed to God and posted a guard day and night.” It’s very important to ask God for help, and to make sure we have submitted ourselves to Him. I love this promise in James 4:7: “Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

2. Rally your family. Look at what Nehemiah does next in verse 13; “Therefore I stationed some of the people behind the lowest point of the wall at the exposed places, posting them by families, with their swords, spears and bows.” Nehemiah placed them as families so they would know what they were fighting for.

Don’t miss this because it’s the defining moment for the community of faith. Nehemiah rallied the families to serve where they were most needed because family bonds of love and protection are very strong. I can almost hear parents saying to the enemy, “You mess with our kids and you’ll have to mess with us!” The very future of their families was at stake. Notice that they were ready to fight – not each other, but the enemy. I hadn’t really noticed before how strategic it was for Nehemiah to have families rallied around a central purpose until I went back and reread chapter 3. Check out these verses:

3:10 – “Jediah…made repairs opposite his house.”

3:23 – “…made repairs in front of their house…made repairs beside his house.”

3:24 – “…repaired another section, from Azariah’s house to the angle…”

3:28 – “…the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house.”

3:29 – “…made repairs opposite his house.”