Jump Start # 3700

Nehemiah 6:15 “So the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of the month Elul, in fifty-two days.”

This Jump Start hits yet another milestone, number 3700. That is a lot of writing. That is a lot of pages. If we printed these front and back, like a book, it would number 1850 pages. My preaching Bible is only 1749 pages. The first Harry Potter book was 320 pages. The 11^th edition of Webster’s Dictionary is 1623 pages. Romeo and Juliet is only 480 pages.

Our verse today shows the mighty achievement of rebuilding the walls around Jerusalem in fifty-two days. That’s amazing. Today, with modern machinery it is unlikely that we could do it in that short of time. In fact, it’d take more than 52 days to get the permits, bids, and paperwork completed to even start the job.

Accomplishments—there’s a lesson or two for us in thinking about that.

First, big accomplishments come about by a series of little achievements. Wars are won that way. Win a battle here, a skirmish there, stay with it, and in time the war is won. Paying off debt is that way. A little extra each month, little by little and before long, the debt is paid. The same is true in getting a college degree. This class. That class. This semester. That semester. One by one, and then you graduate.

Had someone told me years ago to write 3700 pages of a blog I think I would have passed out. No one sets out to do that. Little steps. One by one and staying with it, you accomplish things. Holding that Bible in your hand can be overwhelming. Read a page or a chapter a day. Stay with it. Day after day. And, one day, you’ll flip to Revelation 22, the last page and you will have read the entire Bible, cover to cover.

Second, as with Nehemiah, as with us, there are set back, discouragements and obstacles to overcome. My travel schedule, especially this fall, has put a lot of pressure on getting these written and posted. Nehemiah faced trouble from Sanballat, discouragement from his people, and the enormous task of cleaning up the mess and building again. Such it is in all worthwhile endeavors. You have to stay with it. There are days when you may not feel like getting out in the cold and running. Or, you may not feel like going out on a dark Sunday evening to worship. You push yourself through and keep going. The off ramp always looks inviting. It’s easy to quit. Things come up. Your schedule gets changed. But, with determination you keep going and going.

Third, rejoicing in small victories builds momentum to continue on. As the walls of Jerusalem started getting higher and higher and longer and longer, people could see, this was going to work. This is a good thing. And, those small victories pushes discouragement, pain and troubles to the side. We are doing a good thing and that keeps one going. It has been that way with these Jump Starts. All across the country, people have come up to me and told me that they start their day by reading these. I have a file folder full of letters and emails from you readers. These Jump Starts are being used in prisons. These have made their way across the ocean. Some have used them in classes and for sermons. They have been forwarded to help others who are hurting. This is one of the reasons I keep writing these. I realize they are doing some good.

And, that is the way it is for all of us. Another sermon to preach. Another class to teach. Someone to visit in the hospital. Another card to send. Another family to invite over for dinner. We look back and see that for a moment it did some good. It answered a question. It encouraged a heart. It built someone up. And, you realize that your effort, your time, your work was worth it. And, some day, a soul may come up to you in Heaven and thank you and say, “because of what you did, it helped me to be here.”

What I hear more and more these days are the words, “You can never stop writing.” I appreciate that, but realize one day I will. One day there will be a final Jump Start. One day my work here will be finished.

My hope is that through all of this, it has helped someone to see Jesus. It’s been a journey that I never anticipated taking, but now understand that God has put something special in me and I’m glad that I can use this for His kingdom.

Thank you.

Roger