As a male, cater to your
audience. They look up to you and they will be influenced by you. Ezra had an
audience – Jews in Israel.
Nehemiah 8:5-6 (NIV)
Ezra opened the book. All the people could see him because
he was standing above them; and as he opened it, the
people all stood up. Ezra praised the LORD, the great God; and all the
people lifted their hands and responded, Amen! Amen!” Then they
bowed down to worship the LORD with their faces to the ground.
Emphasis Mine
Therefore, when we study
the life of Ezra, he had a very structured life. Influence and structure work
together. A structured life is a productive life.
Ezra;
Position (teacher of the
Word – a position of influence)
Location (Israel)
Population (Israelites)
Activity (devoted study
and observance of the Law of the LORD)
Direction (By God the
Father alone).
Ezra 7:10 (NIV)
Ezra had devoted himself
to the study and observance of the Law of
the Lord, and to teaching its
decrees and laws in Israel.
Emphasis Mine
Where you come from does
not determine how much influence you will or will not have on where the Lord is
assigning you to. Your gender and race are not pre-determinants either.
When God gives you responsibilities
and specific directions, you need to obey. How far you influence will
be determined by how well you obey.
The Bible says…
Ezra 7:6a (NIV)
…this Ezra came up from Babylon.
Emphasis Mine
Yet he was a Jewish scribe and priest and Ezra 7:10 (NIV) tells
us of where God had called him to – “…and to teaching its
decrees and laws in Israel”.
Emphasis Mine
Understand God is your
helper. Fine tune your influential ability by living in full obedience to God.
By so doing, you will cater to your audience- your audience could be your wife,
son, daughter, co-worker, your boss at work, your church family, etc.
There is a relationship
between influence and obedience. Amen.
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