万事起头难
尼希米记二章11至20节
11我到了耶路撒冷，在那里住了三日。
12我夜间起来，有几个人也一同起来；但神使我心里要为耶路撒冷做甚么事，我并没有告诉人。除了我骑的牲口以外，也没有别的牲口在我那里。
13当夜我出了谷门，往野狗井去（野狗：或译龙），到了粪厂门，察看耶路撒冷的城墙，见城墙拆毁，城门被火焚烧。
14我又往前，到了泉门和王池，但所骑的牲口没有地方过去。
15于是夜间沿溪而上，察看城墙，又转身进入谷门，就回来了。
16我往哪里去，我做甚么事，官长都不知道。我还没有告诉犹大平民、祭司、贵胄、官长，和其余做工的人。
17以后，我对他们说：我们所遭的难，耶路撒冷怎样荒凉，城门被火焚烧，你们都看见了。来罢，我们重建耶路撒冷的城墙，免得再受凌辱！
18我告诉他们我神施恩的手怎样帮助我，并王对我所说的话。他们就说：我们起来建造罢！于是他们奋勇做这善工。
19但和伦人参巴拉，并为奴的亚扪人多比雅和亚拉伯人基善听见就嗤笑我们，藐视我们，说：你们做甚么呢？要背叛王么？
20我回答他们说：天上的神必使我们亨通。我们作他仆人的，要起来建造；你们却在耶路撒冷无分、无权、无纪念。
信息分享
他静静地思考了三天──我们可以相信，他必然也在神面前安静祈祷。未来的日子将有很多工作；现在正是计划和祷告的时刻。接着，他便要亲自视察毁坏的城墙。他要安排人去把残垣断壁移走、把蔓生的植物清除、找回原来的石头，将它们安回原位。他需要计划人手的分配，和构思怎样鼓励民众，去开展这项庞大的重建工程。
然后，他便去到百姓中间，与他们讲解他的计划。他并不是开口便说：「你们应该自觉羞惭！你们已经回来定居多年，却对损毁的城墙无动于衷！」不，他没有责备他们，他反而向他们表示自己也有责任，他们要共同承担此职责。他对他们说：「我们都看见城墙毁了，我们必须合力重建它。我相信神必帮助我们。神必与我们同在。王也支持我们。我们需要共同承担此工作，让我们开始吧！」
尼希米没有承诺工程会很容易完成；但百姓的反应却令人鼓舞。他们说：「让我们起来建造吧！」他们便一起投入工作，我们在第三章将看见他们如何分工合作。
当他们一开始工作，便有人给他们泼冷水。请看第19节。我们在本书的余下部分，将不断看见这类人。他们会想尽办法去阻挠重建的工程；但尼希米总是以同一句说话来作出回应：「我们是照着神的旨意去做。如果你们妨碍我们，我得警告你们，要小心神的责罚。」
我们也许会有同样的经历：当我们知道自己是照着神的旨意去行，却遇到反对的声音。我们会怎样做呢？我们要听清楚别人的批评，反省神为何让这些批评出现。别人的赞赏未必使我们有很大得益，但别人的批评却往往令我们有所醒悟。当我们认定我们的行动是合乎神的心意，我们就要定睛仰望主，相信祂呼召我们去做的工作，祂必定成全。
GETTING STARTED-HARDEST JOB OF ALL
Nehemiah 2:11-20
11 So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days.
12 Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode.
13 And I went out by night through the Valley Gate to the Serpent Well and the Refuse Gate, and viewed the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were burned with fire.
14 Then I went on to the Fountain Gate and to the King’s Pool, but there was no room for the animal under me to pass.
15 So I went up in the night by the valley, and viewed the wall; then I turned back and entered by the Valley Gate, and so returned.
16 And the officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; I had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, or the others who did the work.
17 Then I said to them, “You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come and let us build the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be a reproach.”
18 And I told them of the hand of my God which had been good upon me, and also of the king’s words that he had spoken to me.
So they said, “Let us rise up and build.” Then they set their hands to this good work.
19 But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard of it, they laughed at us and despised us, and said, “What is this thing that you are doing? Will you rebel against the king?”
20 So I answered them, and said to them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no heritage or right or memorial in Jerusalem.”
Message
For three days he sat quietly thinking about it all-we could add praying too. There will be plenty of action in the days ahead. Now was the time for planning and prayer. The next step was to have a look for himself at the ruins of the walls. There would be rubbish to remove, vines to be pulled down, stones to be found and put back in place. He needed to plan how to use the people and how to get them started on the big job of rebuilding.
Then he talked with the people. He did not say. 'You people ought to be ashamed of yourselves. You've lived here all these years and have done nothing.' Instead he identified himself with them in the task. He said, 'We have a problem; we need to do something. I believe God will help us. God is with us. The king is behind us. The job is in front of us. Let's get started.'
Nehemiah did not promise an easy future. But the people responded wonderfully. They said, 'Let us rise up and build'. They put their hands to the work and in chapter three we will hear about their first working bee.
But the moment they decided to begin, opposition started. Look at verse 19. We will meet these men time and time again in the book of Nehemiah. They will try in every way possible to hinder the work. But Nehemiah always had the same answer. 'I stand, we stand, in the will of God. If you stand against us, I warn you, God will deal with you.'
There will be times when we will know the will of God for our lives, and then opposition will come. What will we do? Our refuge will be the will of God. Look at the criticism and see why God has allowed it. We never learn much from compliments, but we can sometimes learn from criticism. At that time, above all, let us never take our eyes off the Lord who has called us to his work.