Nehemiah 2:1-3

Glyn Barrett

The book of Nehemiah starts with an incredibly emotional scene that came about, and was fuelled by, the heartache of a man.

'In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before, so the king asked me, "Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart." I was very much afraid, but I said to the king, "May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"' Nehemiah 2:1-3

Nehemiah's heartache came out of a situation where he saw something that was not as it should have been. As a Jew, Nehemiah would have understood that his people had been chosen by God and that Jerusalem was God's chosen city. His headache came as a result of him understanding that his people, his nation and this city were called to greatness, yet it lay in ruins. The potential was great, but its unfulfillment caused great sorrow and sadness within Nehemiah, so much so that the emotion on the inside flowed out and he showed sadness in front of the King.

In life, like Nehemiah, I believe that one of the saddest and most disappointing things is unfulfilled potential.

George Bernard Shaw, near the end of his life was asked, 'Sir, if you could live your life over again who would you choose to be?' George, now an old man paused and then replied, 'I would be the man that I was meant to be but never was.'

As I look back over my life, at the people that I've known and ministries that I've been involved in, I recall many times when I have had great sadness of heart seeing dreams, ambitions and goals not come to pass. There have been many situations and circumstances where I saw and felt great potential and yet it has caused heartache to see that it has not been accomplished.

What a shame it would be, to go through life and live unfulfilled, to get to your death bed and not be able to say, "God I'm ready".

Pastor Paul Scanlon from Abundant Life Ministries once brilliantly said, "Live full, die empty."

I believe God wants us to live our lives fulfilling the potential he has placed in every one of us.

Nehemiah would have known the stories of his nation. He would have heard them growing up and would have been proud of his race. Yet his heart is now sad and aching as he holds on to these tales of once greatness and yet sees Jerusalem in ruins.

Nehemiah, at this time in his life, finds himself as cup bearer to the King. His job would have been to have tasted the wine that was brought to the King to ensure it was not poisoned. I think of times when I have complained about jobs I have had, but I think Nehemiah's job was probably worse! However, as you read on you begin to realise what immense preparation this seemingly insignificant role would have in the future of Nehemiah's life.

Although at the time, for Nehemiah who was technically a prisoner of war, the role must have been just a job, I realise that it was in fact a set up by God. How else would a prisoner of war be given an opportunity to sit in the presence of the King? How else would Nehemiah have had the opportunity to see the King make decisions and lead a nation? I realise he may have been a cupbearer, but it was a set up by God, preparing him for the man that he would be - a governor of the nation.

It is a brilliant and freeing revelation when you realise that everything that you have been through, everything that you have experienced, from your training and education, to your current pay packet, is God setting you up for the person you will be. Like Nehemiah God is setting you up to be able to take the opportunities he places in front of you, to fufill potential.

The truth is I am challenged when I read the history books of Britain and I realise that it was the Church that gave society hospitals, the Church that created the Universities and schools. I am challenged when I see that it was the Church who were at the forefront of helping, caring and developing our nation and yet I see the Church today marginalised, on the outer ring of society. My heart is saddened by the unfulfillment of potential and like Nehemiah I see something not as it should be.

Yet I believe that there is a generation of cupbearers, who have seen the accounts of history and have read the stories about revivals in the world and who, like Nehemiah, are allowing their sadness of heart, on the inside, now to come out in action. A generation who can see the unfulfillment of potential and believe that they can be a part of the solution.

The king asks Nehemiah, "What is it that you want" and I have come to realise that every morning our King asks us the same question. Nehemiah then goes and builds what he has seen is broken.

I want to encourage you, that we, like Nehemiah, are being set up and trained to be equipped to act on the heartache we feel. To no longer pass unfulfilled potential by, but to act on it. Like Nehemiah we need to take courage and place our requests before our King and then we need to go, build and fulfill.