Is the glass half full? Half empty?

Are you an optimist?
A pessimist?
Are you an idealistic person, or are you zeroed in on reality, instead?
When we are young, we often are refreshing to oldsters, because we are idealistic. We have a zest and a passion that can inspire hope in those who have lost theirs in the many battles of life. Even if our ideas are not practical, and our concepts are colored by our passion, we idealists can bolster the faith and hope of those who are tired and jaded.

As we mature, though, we learn that the real world isn't quite as perfect as we had envisioned. We even begin to believe the old jokes regarding Murphy's Law . . .

• The other line moves faster -- whether it's at the bank, the grocery store, or a tollbooth. Also, if you change lines, the line you left will begin to move faster.
• All papers that you carefully save will be unnecessary -- until you throw them away and they become essential.
• When you are working on your car, any tool you drop will roll under the car to the car's geographic center, which is about three inches farther than your reach.

All of these statements are humorous, because they resemble the real world that we live in. Things don't always go smoothly, right?  Even when we have surrounded them with prayer.

Lord, save us!    Lord, grant us success! (Psalm 118:25)

Contrary to what some people will tell us, following Jesus doesn't guarantee a trouble-free life! In fact, it can get us into deeper trouble, nowadays, but that's a whole 'nother story, right? (Grin)

Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, ³ because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (James 1:2-3)

Part of Christian maturity is learning to deal with the world (and other believers, too) as they are, and not as we would like for them to be.

As we can see in Nehemiah, that applies in the realm of serving God, too. We will see in this second chapter that even though he was doing God's will, the path wasn't all smooth and strewn with rose petals. Studying this chapter can teach us to avoid being overly idealistic - then we can avoid crashing in disillusionment. It can also teach us to be realistic -- but to temper that with hope, so that we don't become cynical and quit.
Nehemiah faced some very real problems; he moved through them to accomplish things for God.

Please join me in reading chapter two of Nehemiah, so that we can study and learn from the Holy Spirit this week.