On Wednesday night, I preached on a text that is not found in the bible. Alright, close the email you were about to send and let me explain.

We are going through the book of Nehemiah. In chapter 1 we have the bad news that Nehemiah has received about his homeland. He spends six verses in prayer and in fasting that concludes the reading of the chapter. Chapter two picks up four months later and if you just jump right into the verses you miss two very important lessons.

That space between verse eleven of chapter one and verse one of chapter two is a very important blank spot in this story. And it's a blank spot that we need to learn and apply to our life each day.

During that four months you have to understand that NOTHING took place out of the ordinary. Nehemiah had the calling on his heart and knew it was God's will for him to return to help his people rebuild the wall. But during these four months of nothing he had to learn two important facts on what God wants you to do until He says go.

1. You have to work - keep your commitment to those you currently serve. God maybe revealing to you that you are going to be placed at another job site or another ministry opportunity but until God says "GO!" you have to honor the commitments you have now.

In our story, Nehemiah started getting himself prepared for the mission. He was praying, he was fasting, he was calculating his time away from work, calculating the amount of money that would be needed for supplies. All while he was still keeping his commitment with the king. He was busy working on himself.

2. You have to wait - God is not only working on your side of the question mark but He is also working on the other side. And the reason you can't leave just yet might be because God has not prepared the course for you to take. Wait and give Him time to develop the road and to get it paved so you will have a smooth trip.

But when you wait, don't sit around and do nothing - but wait with great anticipation of something to come.

Prayer: "Lord, help us to learn that we are not to move until You say move. And in that meantime help us to work and wait on YOU!"