See the Need and Take the Lead

Today’s Reading – Nehemiah 1 – 5 (Click on the references to listen to the audio – Click here to view the passage from Blue Letter Bible)

(Second Milers Read – 1 Corinthians 5 – 8; Psalms 141 – 145; Proverbs 30)

Listen to this morning’s Scripture song –1 John 4:7 & 8

Read the “0530 Evening and Morning” devotion for today, by the late Charles Haddon Spurgeon

Read a previous post from this passage – “A Mind to Work“

“And I said unto the king, If it please the king, and if thy servant have found favour in thy sight, that thou wouldest send me unto Judah, unto the city of my fathers’ sepulchres, that I may build it.” (Nehemiah 2:5)

I love reading these stories about people who build something great for the Lord. Nehemiah heard that his home city, Jerusalem, was in a mess and he decided to do something about it. I see in this passage a pattern that can be followed by God’s people today as we desire to be used of Him to fulfill His will for our lives.

1 Nehemiah perceived – He saw the need

“And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire.”  (Nehemiah 1:3)

2 Nehemiah prayed – He had a burden for Jerusalem and the people of God.

“And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven,” (Nehemiah 1:3-4)

He wept, he fasted, and he prayed for the condition of Jerusalem. When he prayed, he reminded God of the promises that God had made about His mercy on the people if they would turn back to God.

3 Nehemiah performed – he took the lead.

The difference between Nehemiah and most of us is that he was willing to prepare and act upon the burden that he had. So many of us have a burden to do something; but we never get to the point where we take action. In the local church, we see many people who know what needs to be done; but never actually do it. Don’t just talk about (or worse complain about it); do something about it.

4 Nehemiah persisted – He did not quit.

So many of us today allow the slightest things to knock us off course. Nehemiah did not quit because of the difficulty of the task; or from the opposition that he faced (which will always be there).

When I read these passages, I get excited about doing something for the Lord. I want to be able to say at the end of my life (and at the end of my day) that I accomplished something for the Lord.