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Brethren, I come to you today with a message that I accidentally listened to yesterday from one of the wisest human beings alive. The sermon is titled “Living Bigger Than Me” from Bishop T.D. Jakes. In this message he challenges us to live and think beyond ourselves by aiming at achieving things that impact the future of others. To demonstrate how we can achieve selflessness, Bishop Jakes employs the story of Nehemiah 2: 1-10, 13-17, 4: 2. In this scripture, Nehemiah was serving the king of Persia (Artaxerxes) in his palace and was troubled with the terrible news he had received about his people who had returned to Judah. To explain why Nehemiah was serving the king of Persia instead of being with his brothers in Judah, Bishop provides a brief background that led to his current state of employment. He explains that Nehemiah was born in exile and that after Persia overpowered the Babylonians who had taken the Israelites captive, Israelites were allowed to return back to their home but others like Nehemiah chose to stay behind.

In chapter 1, Nehemiah is informed about the suffering of his people and how the city was in ruins. He was very disturbed by this that he fasted and prayed to God for some days. Bishop says, “the things that drive you crazy are the things you have the power to change.” He further argues that our passion drives us to our purpose. Bishop also notes that although Nehemiah was having a comfortable life working in the palace, it didn’t stop him from being affected by the suffering of his brothers. He did not stop at knowing the truth about his brothers, but rather went ahead to act on it. According to bishop Jakes, it is impossible for selfish people to serve God. Bishop distinguishes between people who put themselves first (those that see the suffering of others and do not care to help them because they are worried about their own welfare) and those who believe they have a higher calling in life to change the situation in one way or another. He warns us to avoid living our lives for things that will perish and challenges us to ask ourselves these questions, “what are you doing that is beyond you? what would people lose if they lost you? how are you affecting the lives of someone else other than you and yours? In addition, he calls upon us to say prayers that go beyond us. I was personally challenged by these questions. They have triggered in me a need to reevaluate my life and reconsider some of the decisions I am/have been making in my life.

There are three points that bishop T.D. Jakes demonstrates using Nehemiah’s story in this sermon and I will explore them below;

1. You are positioned for purpose; Our current situation is never a mistake to God. Bishop Jakes demonstrates that we are placed in different places and situations in preparation for our purpose. He argues, “God had put him (Nehemiah) in a place that he was keen to the Jews, but he worked for the Persians.” Nehemiah just like Moses in Egypt was the perfect candidate to be used by God to save his people. Bishop explains how his experience in the palace was something that worked in favor of his destiny. He was not placed in the palace to only serve the king but rather to call in a favor by using his influence to help his brothers. Therefore, we need to know that where we are right now is not by mistake. We need to work very hard and be obedient in the seasons where God has us now. If Nehemiah had been a terrible servant, he would never have been able to have this job that allowed him to get audience with the king and queen. Where you are right now is a small piece of the puzzle (that is your life). Excel there and God will gain the glory from your obedience. The most important thing to remember is to not be selfish but rather have a bigger vision to make an impact beyond you. You may be afraid to use your influence to help others because the people around you do not believe in what you believe in but remember that Nehemiah was scared too. The many languages that you speak, the geographical influence that you have, your platform, your degree, your talents, they are all part of God’s plan for your life to serve a bigger purpose. Don’t use them selfishly.
2. “God is about to give you favor“; Although Nehemiah had the influence, he needed resources to be able to get his vision off the ground to help Judah. Because of his experience and art of communication, he was able to speak to the king in the right way. The king did not only ask why Nehemiah was saddened at heart but also asked him what he needed to do, what he wanted to do. When you have a dream to fix something big, you have to have a plan to execute it. Imagine what could have happened if Nehemiah had no clue about what he wanted, when the king asked him what he needed to help his people, he would have lost the opportunity. The key point here is strategy, bishop asks, “do you know what you want or are you just complaining?” Also, bishop believes that because Nehemiah was willing to be used by God, his prayers and passion for the mission allowed God to give him a vision and provision. When asked what he needed, Nehemiah prayed first to God. After his prayer, he went on to make requests to the king which he granted. Nehemiah says in 2: 8, “And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my request.” It is God that gave him favor in the eyes of the king because he sought him first and was obedient to his will for his life. Bishop tells us that God has already made the way and planned out everything, our role is to have the courage to do what he expects us to do despite how scary it may be. Nehemiah was able to attain security, transport, building material, among so many other things. When God provides for us, we also need the courage to face the next steps in our journey-which may be challenging-to pursue God’s purpose for our lives. According to bishop, “you can’t get more of what you want, if you’re not prepared to deal with more of what you don’t want.”
3. Build that wall; After an assessment of the situation in Jerusalem, Nehemiah found that there was urgent need to build the city walls to avoid being disgraced. Bishop believes that “your walls determine your strength.” To expand the concept of the walls further, he adds, “when you lose your walls, anything can get out and anything can get in.” By this he means that without boundaries, we allow easy access into and out of our lives such as insecurity, anger, intimidation, etc. and because the walls are down, we end up releasing negative thoughts and words as a defense mechanism of what has been done to us. For instance, if you do not set boundaries, you allow anyone to come in and hurt you, it can also be their opinions and because of this you may start to behave in a negative way or display a bad attitude to defend yourself. All this could have started because your walls were down. He argues that when we fail to govern our spirit, we lose the control that we have over our bodies. He also believes that these walls keep breaking down when we experience things such as loss which leave us vulnerable to destruction. Furthermore, he argues that we have to be willing to fix our walls for God to bless us, this means we have to make some changes in our lives and fix some parts of us to strengthen our relationship with God. This will help our vulnerable state and allow God’s work to be done inside of us without exposure to the enemy that stands outside our walls bringing confusion and making us doubt ourselves. Some of the things you can do here are; breaking up with things that tear you down spiritually, such as social media, negative people, toxic relationships, etc.

Lastly, bishop Jakes encourages us to make what he calls “an honest damage assessment analysis” and ask ourselves where we should/could be now. To move further into our purpose, we need to invest in ourselves and our gifts, to protect what is in us that God wants to use to bring about change. We may have been hurt and destroyed by other people in our lives and the different life experiences just like the city of Jerusalem, however, bishop reminds us that while their enemies ridiculed Nehemiah and the Jews (4: 1-3), they prayed to God, worked with all their hearts (Vs 4-6) and brought back to life burnt stones that had been destroyed and used them to build the city walls. The key points here are, prayer, hard work and perspective (make use of what you have NOW). You can use the ashes that you have been left with to rebuild. Bishop calls upon us to be innovative and urges us to remember, “what you’re doing-living bigger than yourself-is going to bring about change.” You are doing it for the greater good, a lot of people are depending on your strength so do not give up now. He notes that many of the people we look up to such as Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King were selfless enough to want to bring about change beyond their personal needs, they also had to fight through a lot of opposition, we too can emulate them. He also says, “the noise beneath you is trying to bring you down, don’t listen to them…you left down (where you were) to get here…if you respond to them you will do it at the expense of your mission.” Colossians 3: 2 tells us, “set your minds on things above, not on earthly things”

What compelled me to share this message was because it challenged me to keep thinking big, unapologetically. I like to think that I am a dreamer and I sure do hate it when I cannot do my best to help someone I know I can help. But on the other hand, I am also a procrastinator (many times) and this means that I leave a lot of things undone because I have pushed them on the side for long. Like many of you out there, I believe I have a purpose bigger than me and that God has placed me in this world to use all my experiences (bad or good) to bring about change beyond me. I have, on many occasions, seen how God has used some of my experiences to help me connect with certain people in my life and to do things only I can do because of where I have been. I do believe that my story is still being written. Nevertheless, as I listened to bishop, I realized how I may have also been selfish in some parts of my planning and that I have also not taken action (or been lazy) like Nehemiah did to prepare for when the right person asks me what I need to make my vision come to pass. I need to unlearn being selfish and do what I was put on earth to do, that is to serve God.

May God provide you with wisdom, knowledge and understanding to recognize your purpose. May you win favor everywhere you go and may you be able to use this favor to unselfishly do God’s will. I believe that you have what it takes to (as bishop says), “learn the art of service.”

With love and prayers,

Resty Kansiime

Here is Bishop T.D. Jake’s sermon Living Bigger Than Me! – Bishop T.D. Jakes – YouTube