It has been a good month for Britain. At the beginning of June the celebrations for the Queen's Golden Jubilee evidenced much more enthusiasm for the monarchy than had been anticipated. Palace officials hope that this renewed impetus will not be lost.

Perhaps Her Majesty will look back on this year as an 'annus mirabilis' instead of the 'annus horribilis' of a few years ago.

Added to this we have witnessed a cluster of excellent sporting achievements. Lennox Lewis beat Mike Tyson - though whether it is sport is a moot point. The England cricket team snatched a victory in the third Test against Sri Lanka with a display of determined batting, bowling and fielding that was heartening to watch. 'Our' footballs (as many here in Wales seem happy to call them) have already made themselves into heroes at the World Cup and may have achieved sporting immortality by the time you read this. And could it be Tim Henman’s year at Wimbledon? The joy would be unconfined!The fact of the current sporting success highlights previous under-achievement. It is perhaps the peculiarly British malaise - a failure of confidence, not pressing on to win, letting an advantage slip. Until recently it seemed to be endemic in the England cricket side.

It is also vital in our Christian lives and in our churches to press on in what we have begun to do. This was the challenge faced by the Jews of Ezra's day. They had returned to Jerusalem from Babylon and began to establish the worship of the true God again in the midst of a ruined city. The foundations of a new temple were completed amid great rejoicing - apart from some who remembered the first temple and wept (Ezra 3:10-13). However opposition, both from outright enemies and erstwhile helpers, hindered the work and eventually the building work had to stop by order of the Persian emperor Artaxerxes.

Lost impetus 

For 16 years the temple remained only a foundation. Gradually the Jews got used to it. They became complacent, self-centred, apathetic. They adopted a comfortable lifestyle. They seemed to be able to ignore the half-finished temple in the interests of making their own homes more luxurious (Haggai 1:3-4).

At the beginning there may be legitimate reasons for having to cease a particular ministry or activity. In the case of the Jews the opposition ceased to be a real factor. Once Darius had become emperor of Persia officials rediscovered the original decree of Cyrus granting official approval for the rebuilding of the temple at Jerusalem and so there was now no hindrance.

We easily become used to a less strenuous routine and before long the desire and willingness to put ourselves out has evaporated. It doesn’t happen obviously or suddenly, but it does happen. Powerful ministry

Into this rather lethargic, complacent atmosphere comes a short, sharp burst of God’s Word! The arrival on the scene of Haggai and Zechariah had a transforming effect. They only preached for three months (from August 29th to November 19th 520BC are the most likely dates) but their powerful rebuke and encouragement aimed initially at the leaders Zerubbabel and Joshua (Ezra 5:2) spurred the people to resume work on the temple. Haggai urged the people firstly to consider their ways (Haggai 1:5,7), putting God’s building first so that they would again know his blessing on their lives; and secondly to get working, with the promise of his help and presence (Haggai 2:4-5)The preaching of Haggai and Zechariah was effective not just because of their words but also because of their involvement. They didn't just shout at the people from a distance - they rolled up heir sleeves and got stuck in as well! (Ezra 5:2). The message was incarnate in the messenger. The people learned the urgency and importance of the task from the attitude of their leaders.

In the New Testament Peter's two letters are designed to thoroughly stir the minds of his readers, even though they were established in the truth (2 Peter 1:12-15; 3:1). The Greek word can mean to arouse someone, as when the disciples had to wake up the Lord Jesus from sleep during the storm (Luke 8:24). Peter’s main theme in his second letter is the future coming in glory of our Lord Jesus Christ and it is this doctrine of which he especially wants to remind his readers so that they will be ‘stirred up’. In the grip of inertia, perhaps intimidated by the size of the task or the words of the Church’s enemies, perhaps unwilling to break out of our comfort zone - do we not need the Lord to speak to us too?God's people stirred 

Haggai 1:12-15 shows the remarkable effect the prophets had:

Then Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, and Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, with all the remnant of the people, obeyed the voice of the LORD their God, and the words of Haggai the prophet, as the LORD their God had sent him; and the people feared the presence of the LORD.

Then Haggai, the LORD's messenger, spoke the LORD's message to the people, saying, ‘I am with you, says the LORD.’So the LORD stirred up the spirit of Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judas, and the spirit of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest, and the spirit of all the remnant of the people; and they came and worked on the house of the LORD of hosts.Let us in our generation not neglect the unfinished tasks. Let us press on. The LORD of hosts is on our side.