What Do You Do When the Problem Is Bigger Than You?

By Pastor John Erickson

Have you ever heard about a problem and immediately felt overwhelmed?

Somebody is hurting. A relationship is falling apart. Something in your community is broken. You see the need, and it's real, but you think, What in the world am I supposed to do about that?

It's bigger than you. It's going to take resources you don't have, influence you don't have, or time you can't imagine finding.

I know that feeling. Sometimes I see so much brokenness in the world that I want to fix everything. And when I realize I can't, I get overwhelmed.

Nehemiah begins with exactly that kind of burden.

Nehemiah Couldn't Ignore What He Heard

Nehemiah was living in Susa, serving the Persian king as his cupbearer. It was an important position of trust. He had a life, responsibilities, and access to the king.

Then he asked some visitors about Jerusalem.

Their report was terrible. The people were in distress. The wall was broken down. The gates had been burned.

And Nehemiah's response is remarkable.

He doesn't immediately announce a fundraising campaign or start passing out assignments. He sits down. He weeps. He mourns. He fasts. And he prays.

That doesn't sound like what we usually think of as leadership, does it?

We often imagine that a leader should be the person with the quickest answer and the most confident voice in the room.

But Nehemiah begins by bringing his grief before God.

There Are Two Easy Ways to Mishandle a Burden

I've noticed two things we can do when we're overwhelmed.

First, we can turn the burden into worry.

We carry the problem around in our minds, replay all the possible outcomes, and imagine every way things could go wrong. We can't fix it, but we can't stop thinking about it either.

Second, we can become numb.

There's so much suffering that we start tuning it out. We don't want to feel anything because feeling something might mean we're responsible for doing something.

Nehemiah offers another way.

He lets the burden move him to prayer.

And he doesn't pray a quick religious sentence so he can say he's done his part. He spends time before God. He confesses his own sins and the sins of his people. He remembers God's promises. He asks for favor and guidance.

The burden doesn't go away, but the burden begins to shape him.

Prayer Is Preparation, Not a Way to Avoid Action

Here's an important detail in the story.

Nehemiah hears the report in the month of Kislev. The conversation with the king doesn't come until Nisan, months later.

That's a long time to carry a problem.

During that time, Nehemiah is praying. And when the king finally notices his sadness, Nehemiah is ready to explain what he needs.

He has an answer to the king's questions. He asks for permission to go. He requests letters that will give him safe passage. He asks for timber to help with the construction.

This wasn't somebody showing up with, "Well, I felt like God wanted me to do something, so I figured we'd work out the details later."

He prayed, and he prepared.

I love that combination. But patience is not always my first instinct. I am a doer. Give me a problem and I want to start fixing it. Nehemiah's months of prayer make me ask whether I am willing to remain before God before charging ahead with my answer.

Gina and I once attended a pastors' gathering in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho. Randy Remington challenged us to consider whether we spent as much time praying as we did preparing our messages. That question stayed with me. What did my schedule say about my confidence in prayer compared with my confidence in a well-prepared message?

The answer was not to stop preparing. It was to take prayer more seriously. I needed that correction.

Sometimes we set prayer and planning against each other, as though trusting God means we shouldn't think things through.

Nehemiah shows us something better. Prayer can change the way we plan. It can deepen our courage, sharpen our motives, and help us prepare for the work in front of us.

Good Leadership Doesn't Have to Begin with a Microphone

Not everybody is going to lead an organization, plant a church, or stand on a platform.

But all of us have places where we can exercise influence.

You might be the person who notices a coworker struggling. A parent trying to help a child through a difficult season. A neighbor who sees a need nobody else is addressing.

Leadership can begin there.

Nehemiah didn't begin as the famous wall-builder. He began as a person who cared enough to ask how his people were doing.

Then he let the answer affect him.

And when an opportunity opened, he was prepared to act.

Start with What God Has Put in Front of You

I think we sometimes feel paralyzed because we assume that if we can't fix the whole problem, we can't make any difference at all.

But Nehemiah didn't rebuild Jerusalem's walls in one afternoon. His first steps were listening, grieving, praying, and getting ready.

Maybe your first step is a phone call. Or asking somebody how they're really doing. Or admitting that you need help. Or spending time praying about a burden you've been carrying as worry.

You don't have to pretend the problem is small.

You can acknowledge that it's bigger than you and still ask God what faithful action looks like.

What is the burden that keeps coming back to your mind?

And instead of only worrying about it-or trying not to think about it-what would happen if you began bringing it to God and asking him to prepare you for your part?