In the book Risking David Viscott reminds us that if we never risked, we would never move away from home, find a job, ask for a raise, make a friend, or fall in love. Have you ever thought about what you would miss if you never risked?

Our daughter, Rachael, is flying out to a grad school in California this week for an interview on her ongoing prayerful seeking of God's further direction in her life. You might pray for her Mom who is a little uneasy about having our young daughter make that trip to an unfamiliar place alone. Sometimes we need to risk a little by checking out some possibilities of how the Lord may be leading us.

I still remember a young man I met nearly 40 years ago in Florida during an evangelism project in which I participated. He had been hurt by a friend and because of this he had determined that he would never risk getting close to anyone again. How sad, especially if that determina­tion kept him from getting close to God.

What risks might God be calling us to take in this New Year? Many good churches like ours could be so much better if we were more will­ing to risk. I am not talking about foolish risking, but seeking to live out our faith, perhaps with methods that may be new and different for us. We might be inconve­nienced or feel uncomfortable, but the Holy Spirit may be nudging us to risk in the name of Jesus Christ. I would like us to think for a few moments about motivations to risk with Nehemi­ah 2 as our background.

I. Love for God.

Nehemiah was in a very comfortable posi­tion in the royal court of Persia, but he was willing to risk because he had a heart for God and God's people. I believe his love for God motivated him to risk when presented with the need.

With his respected position it was common for him to be in the presence of the king. However, from what I have read, it was a risk to be sad in the presence of the King. In The New Bible Commentary, Revised we read: "The sense of high drama is preserved in this narrative. Such was the absolute power of a monarch of this period that to appear sad in his presence could be cause for dismissal or death." One of the frequent prohibitions from God in the scrip­tures is "Fear Not!" Fear can cripple us and keep us from risking for God. Do you really love God? Do you love God enough to risk demonstrat­ing your love by serving the Lord as the Holy spirit directs? What if you think your peers might not understand?

II. Listening to God

I do not believe that Nehemiah risked his position or possibly his life foolishly. Before he took this risk that led to other risks he had spent much time listening to God. I assume that Nehemiah was listening to God prior to hearing the appeal of Hanani that I mentioned from the previous chapter. When he heard the appeal we read that he sat down and wept and mourned for days and he continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven. As I indicated last week, Nehemiah spent about four months talking and listening to God about this particular dilemma before he took further action.

That sounds like a great way to proceed in challenges before us. Spend time pouring out our heart to God and listening to God. Then as we risk, obey the leading of the Holy Spirit, and keep praying and listening for further instructions. As I share this encouragement for us to listen to God, I am well aware of the fact that this is very difficult for many Christians. Years ago, a godly lay person from Des Moines came to the church I was pasturing to lead a weekend workshop on prayer. One of the most uneasy parts of that experience for many of our people was the hour that Harry asked us to go off somewhere in the church building in silence to listen to God.

III. Losers are winners for God.

Note, these are my words, not Nehemiah's. However, I believe this was another motivating factor for him. He really wanted to walk in obedience to God. The possibility of death for a Godly person was preferable to a world of weeping and mourning by failing to do what God was calling him to do. Nehemiah put his life on the line, risking for God.

Perhaps you have heard about the risks and failures of this man? "He lost his job in 1832. He was defeated for the legisla­ture, also in 1832. He failed in business in 1833. He was elected to the legislature in 1834. He suf­fered the loss of his sweetheart, who died in 1835. He suffered a nervous break­down in 1836. He was defeated for speak­er of the state legislature in 1838. He was defeated for nomination for Congress in 1843. He was elected to Congress in 1846. He lost his renomination to Congress in 1848. He was rejected for the position of land officer in 1849. He was defeated for the Senate in 1854. He was defeated for the nomination for Vice President of the United States in 1856. He was defeated again for Senate in 1858. Abra­ham Lincoln was elected President of the United States in 1860.

Sisters and brothers, I believe risk can force us away from ourselves and demand that we depend upon our Lord. Do we have anything to lose that is more important than being obedi­ent to Jesus Christ? Are we willing to be risk takers for God? I recall the words of martyr Jim Elliot, "He is no fool, who gives what he knows he cannot keep, to gain what he knows he cannot lose."

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