Saturday 9 December 2017

Nehemiah 1:4 - So it was, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned for many days; I was fasting and praying before the God of heaven.

Pryor to this verse, one of Nehemiah's brethren came with some other men from Judah, and Nehemiah asked about the wellbeing of his fellow Jews. Their response was less then pleasant: “The survivors who are left from the captivity in the province are there in great distress and reproach. The wall of Jerusalem is also broken down, and it’s gates are burned with fire.” Nehemiah’s heart burned for his brothers. His love for them and the people of Jerusalem was evident and it wasn’t his words that spoke so loud but his actions. He didn’t just weep for them and move on but he began to fast and pray, and not just for a day but it says many days. Nehemiah’s self-sacrifice, placing those he loved above himself is what I believe qualified him for the task that was to come next. His passion for the people of Judah and Jerusalem was so evident that the king he was a cupbearer to, noticed that Nehemiah was upset and said to him “ What do you request?” Before responding to the king, Nehemiah prayed to our Heavenly Father and then began with this request; he wanted to leave and go help his brethren, and the king granted him this. The love that Nehemiah had for his brothers is something that I can say I admire, and I pray that I develop a sense of love and compassion not only for those that I’m growing close to, but those that I don’t even know. There’s people all around the world that are in distress whether it be poverty, family issues, health issues, spiritual issues or all of the above. I want to develop a heart for people all around that are struggling, that are misguided and have lost sight of God or maybe never had Him in their sight at all. I want to have a love like Nehemiah, a love that drives me to action.

No comments:

Post a Comment