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Do it yourself encouragement call 052420022 Ezra 4 · Life For Toledo

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  This is Pastor Daniel Stevenson at Southside Life Station in United
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  Socialist Baptist Church and you're receiving this message because you opted
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  in to be encouraged. I'm thinking today of Ezra 4 verses 1-2. Now when the
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  enemies of Judah and Benjamin heard that the people of the exile were building a
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  temple to the Lord God of Israel, they approached Zerubbabel and the heads of
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  fathers, households, and said to them, let us build with you for we like you seek
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  your God and we have been sacrificing to him since the days of Esra'had and King
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  of Assyria who brought us up here. The real answer to what to do here is in the
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  phrase, the enemies of Judah and Benjamin. The bottom line is you cannot let
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  people build what you are supposed to be building for the Lord. You're supposed to
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  be honest and strong and true, giving and serving and worshiping God and praising
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  him and praying to him and studying your Bible and all the things that God would
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  have us to do as Christians and no one else can do that for you. You have to do
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  it because it's the right thing to do for the Lord. If the enemies step in and
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  they take over doing what we're doing, then what happens when they stop? And they
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  will because they aren't followers of God. They don't love the Lord. They don't
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  have that faithfulness to continue doing what it is that we're supposed to be
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  doing. I'm thinking of donors and finances that we struggle with at the
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  Life Station. We have a hard time having enough money to make sure that we can
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  take care of all the people that we're taking care of. I wonder sometimes if it
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  isn't because everybody thinks well somebody else is going to do it. We're
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  all letting somebody else give, serve, worship and we have to stop. We have to
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  take on to ourselves the things that God has given us as a responsibility and
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  make sure that those things get done. Honor God with your choices. Live for God.
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  Serve God. Give. Stretch yourself. Sacrifice as necessary. Jesus certainly did and
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  stop letting someone else take care of what it is that we're supposed to be
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  taking care of. Now, I'm not saying you can't have help, especially help from
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  other believers. Brothers and sisters in Christ and we should work together in
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  community to truly honor God. We got to stop saying somebody else is going to take
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  care of it and take care of honoring God with all that we are ourselves. Help us
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  Lord in Jesus' name. Amen.