Ezra 4 & Nehemiah 4 | Battling Discouragement 

Life can be hard.

Even the best life is filled with discouragement.

Ezra 4 and Nehemiah 4 teach us how to battle discouragement, especially when it comes to those who are committed to doing good. 

Ezra 4 is about the discouragement that comes through persecution. It is persecution that is public and political. It chronicles 100 years of subversions, slanders, and defeats for those whose hearts were set on rebuilding God’s house…his temple, and his city.

Nehemiah 4 is about the discouragement that is private and personal, dealing with mockery and having to bear burdens that are too big for you to carry. 

Big Idea: The key to battling discouragements in the Christian life is to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, who also battled discouragement and brought victory. 

Ezra 4 and Nehemiah 4 give us a game plan for battling discouragement. This Sunday, we will unpack that game plan, and  we will see how we need to: 

Pray and Protect 

and 

Remember and Fight