Haggai 1:13-15

Then Haggai, the messenger of the Lord, spoke by the commission of the Lord to the people saying, “ ‘I am with you,’ declares the Lord.” So the Lord stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the Lord of hosts, their God, on the twenty-fourth day of the sixth month in the second year of Darius the king.^[1]

It is one thing to receive a message from the Lord, but it is another thing entirely to do something after having heard that message. It would be wonderful to believe that people so accepted what they heard from God that they would immediately go to work as a result of having heard it. The truth of the matter is that many people are paralyzed by the fear that they have not heard accurately or that they will fail.

The God we serve does not miss anything, so while we are struggling with how to respond to the messages we have received, God has made provision through two very specific things. First, God reassures the people that they are not alone, but that He is with them. That God is with us is good news especially when you consider all we have to endure. What would we do if we did not have a God to whom to turn or upon whom we could lean, but we do have such a God and such a relationship that we know He will be with us through every test and trial.

Second, Haggai records that God stirred up the spirit of the leaders and the people. If the work were to be accomplished, it would take the combined efforts of those in leadership working in sync with the people. It would also take a level of zeal and enthusiasm that the people had obviously lacked during the multiple years they procrastinated. It may not be intentional but notice that God stirred up the hearts of the leaders first. If the leader(s) is not excited then the excitement of the people will wane. If the leader is stirred up and the people are as well great things can be accomplished for the Lord.

About what are you stirred today? What is it that has you excited? What lies in your spirit that will not let you go? If it is from the Lord that stirring will be accompanied by an assurance that He is with you to get it done. I can hear Richard Smallwood now singing, “I will be with you . . .”

Dear Father, thank You for the marvelous assurance that You will be with us. We confess that we cannot make it by ourselves. We are consumed by fear; the fear of failure; the fear of being labeled; the fear of being ridiculed; and so much more. Thank You for reminding us that You are the One who said that You would never leave us or forsake us, that you would be with us to the very end of the age. Help us to carry that blessed assurance with us today so that we can hold on to the zeal on the inside of us to do what You have commissioned us to do, in Jesus’ precious and mighty name. Amen.

^[1] New American Standard Bible: 1995 Update (LaHabra, CA: The Lockman Foundation, 1995), Hag 1:13–15.