Debates are the Presidents best forum because he is well prepared
You can read part one about dealing with insults here. It is a fact of life that we run into opposition. Seemingly no matter the size of the project there will be people that argue, disagree, or even sabotage what we're doing. Therefore if we know it's coming, we must prepare. Let's look back about 2500 years to see how Nehemiah stood against opposition.
You can read the remarkable story of Nehemiah here
Quick background on Nehemiah:
- Cup Barer to the most powerful man in the world, King Artaxerxes.
- One day while doing his courtly duties the king noticed how sad Nehemiah was.
- The King asked how he could fix Nehemiah's sadness.
- Nehemiah said that if he could go rebuild the walls of his home town Jerusalem he'll feel better.
- The Persian King makes the Jewish Nehemiah governor of Jerusalem
- Nehemiah travels 1000 miles to build a 12 mile of walls around Jerusalem.
- During the 52 days it took the Israelites to rebuild their city's walls they faced much opposition.
- Eventually the walls were built!
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The Fight:
When insults weren't enough to deter the Israelites Nehemiah's enemies decided violence was the next step. This is the point where Sanballat and Tobiah stop just hurling insults, organized, and pick up their swords. Nehemiah and his work crew were moving way too fast for Sanballat and Tobiah's tastes. Their wealth depended on Jerusalem's walls remaining in rubble.
