How Do You Keep Going When Everything Pushes Back?

Nehemiah 3-6 and what to do with criticism, fear, and distraction

By Pastor John Erickson

Plans look wonderful before anything goes wrong. Then comes the part where real life gets a vote.

It's easy to have a beautiful plan when everything is going your way. You have your goals. Your timeline. You've thought through the details. You're ready to go.

And then somebody punches you in the mouth. Figuratively, I hope.

Suddenly the question isn't whether you had a plan. It's whether you can keep going when the plan gets difficult.

The book of Nehemiah gives us a remarkable picture of this.

The Work Wasn't Just Nehemiah's Work

Nehemiah had returned to Jerusalem to help rebuild the walls and gates of the city. In chapter 3, the book describes people working on different sections.

Families, priests, workers, and leaders each take responsibility for a part of the wall.

Some are working near their own homes. That's a pretty strong motivation. If the wall collapses, it's your backyard that's exposed.

I think there's something important in that. Nehemiah didn't try to do everything himself. He organized people around a shared mission and gave them meaningful work.

And the city began to change.

But the progress didn't make everybody happy.

Opposition Often Starts with Words

Sanballat and Tobiah mocked the builders. They ridiculed the work and questioned whether it could possibly succeed.

Tobiah joked that the wall was so weak a fox could knock it down.

That is some quality ancient-world smack talk.

And it works, doesn't it? Mockery gets inside our heads. We start wondering whether maybe we're the idiots for thinking something good could happen.

When the ridicule doesn't stop the work, threats follow. The opposition grows more serious. Rumors spread. Fear travels through the community.

Those are familiar tactics: criticism, intimidation, and confusion.

You don't have to be rebuilding a wall to recognize them.

Maybe you're trying to make a healthy change in your family. You're rebuilding trust. You're starting something new. You're attempting to serve people faithfully.

And suddenly all you can hear is the criticism.

Nehemiah Responds with Prayer and Purpose

Nehemiah doesn't pretend the danger isn't there.

He prays. His prayer in Nehemiah 4:4-5 is raw and angry; he brings that anger to God instead of starting a contest of insults. Imagine his reply: Oh yeah? Your wall would fall down with HALF a fox! Thankfully, that is not the strategy he chooses.

He takes practical precautions. He stations people at vulnerable places. He reminds them why they're doing the work in the first place.

At one point he tells the people to remember the Lord and fight for their families and homes.

And the work continues.

I think we need both parts of that response.

Prayer is not denial. It is not saying, "I trust God, so I don't need to pay attention to what is happening."

But fear doesn't get to run the entire operation either.

Nehemiah prays, makes wise decisions, encourages his people, and returns to the work.

Sometimes the most faithful thing you can do is keep your eyes on the mission instead of letting every criticism determine your next move.

Don't Ignore Opposition from Within

The story gets even more challenging in Nehemiah 5.

The biggest problem isn't only the people shouting from outside the walls. There is injustice happening among God's own people. Some wealthy members of the community are exploiting others who are already struggling.

Nehemiah becomes angry.

And here's what matters: he doesn't simply let his anger drive the response. He stops and considers what to do before confronting the leaders responsible.

Then he calls for change.

That is a different kind of courage.

Criticism from people we know can hurt more than criticism from strangers. I remember being at a conference, in the middle of worship with my hands raised, when my watch alerted me to a text. Someone I knew was criticizing how I had handled a church situation.

It could have pulled me completely away from what God was doing in that moment. I reached out to our leadership team and asked for prayer.

That does not mean every criticism of a pastor is wrong. Nehemiah 5 makes exactly the opposite point: sometimes people are naming a genuine injustice. I need enough humility to listen and enough patience to respond thoughtfully.

It's easy to blame everything on outsiders. It's much harder to admit that something inside our own community is wrong and needs attention.

Nehemiah doesn't let loyalty to the group become an excuse for ignoring injustice within it.

He wants the mission to succeed, and that means the people doing the mission must care for one another.

Perseverance Is Not the Same as Stubbornness

A stubborn person refuses to change course no matter what happens. A persevering person stays faithful to the right purpose while remaining willing to listen, adjust, repent, and make wise decisions.

Nehemiah doesn't ignore every objection. He addresses genuine problems and refuses to be controlled by manipulation.

That's what makes his example useful.

Some resistance is a distraction. Some resistance is a warning that we've missed something important. We need discernment to tell the difference.

But once we know the work is good, criticism doesn't have to be the thing that stops us.

The wall was rebuilt because people kept showing up, working together, and refusing to surrender the mission to fear.

What Is Trying to Steal Your Attention?

If you're in the middle of something difficult, ask yourself a few questions.

What is the good work you're trying to do? Which voices are helping you do that work better? Which ones are simply trying to pull your attention away from it?

And is there something in your own heart or community you need to address before moving forward?

Following Jesus doesn't promise a life without opposition. But it does invite us to be people of prayer, courage, humility, and perseverance.

You may get punched in the mouth.

That doesn't mean the work is over.