Nehemia and Prayer Part Two 8/10/13

Good morning from the picnic table in our back yard. It won't be long until my Saturdays are filled with my three companions. My shot gun, my dogs and me. I feel Fall coming. And hunting season will begin. I am drinking a cup of Door County Totally Nuts Coffee today to salute sarcastically my week. "Totally Nuts"! Their fall flavors have come out and I am ready to stock up on my duck boat favorites. www.doorcountycoffee.com

Enough coffee talk. As I promised yesterday we will continue for a short few days in the book of Nehemiah to study our own prayer lives. I will copy the Scripture and then add my commentary to it

Nehemiah 2

New International Version (NIV)

Artaxerxes Sends Nehemiah to Jerusalem

2 In the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was brought for him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had not been sad in his presence before, ² so the king asked me, “Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.”

I was very much afraid, ³ but I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not look sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?”
⁴ The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Notice! Nehemiah's prayer was answered. His petition for others was granted.
Then I prayed to the God of heaven, Nehemiah was in constant prayer (spiritual prayer). I am sure he did not call a time out to pray for an hour and then answer Artaxerxes. But before speaking he prayed. Do you and I do that or does our mouths run ahead of our prayer life? Are we pompous and rely on our own wisdom before consulting God? ⁵ and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my ancestors are buried so that I can rebuild it.”
⁶ Then the king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked me, “How long will your journey take, and when will you get back?” It pleased the king to send me; so I set a time. With every petition comes an answer. Then a call. Notice Nehemiah had no idea all that would encounter him on his journey yet he did not hesitate to set a time and then go.. His answered prayer gave him extra faith in what God would and can do.  
⁷ I also said to him, “If it pleases the king, may I have letters to the governors of Trans-Euphrates, so that they will provide me safe-conduct until I arrive in Judah?  ⁸ And may I have a letter to Asaph, keeper of the royal park, so he will give me timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple and for the city wall and for the residence I will occupy?” God also provided wisdom for Nehemiah to ask for the papers he would need. God provided those provisions. And because the gracious hand of my God was on me, the king granted my requests. He acknowledges who performed the miracle. ⁹ So I went to the governors of Trans-Euphrates and gave them the king’s letters. The king had also sent army officers and cavalry with me.
¹⁰ When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about this, they were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites. Of course with a call answered by prayer and endorsed by God we will continue to need to rely on God.

Nehemiah Inspects Jerusalem’s Walls

¹¹ I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days ¹² I set out during the night with a few others. I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem. There were no mounts with me except the one I was riding on.
¹³ By night I went out through the Valley Gate toward the Jackal^[a] Well and the Dung Gate, examining the walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire. ¹⁴ Then I moved on toward the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but there was not enough room for my mount to get through; ¹⁵ so I went up the valley by night, examining the wall. Finally, I turned back and reentered through the Valley Gate. ¹⁶ The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because as yet I had said nothing to the Jews or the priests or nobles or officials or any others who would be doing the work.
¹⁷ Then I said to them, “You see the trouble we are in: Jerusalem lies in ruins, and its gates have been burned with fire. Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace.” ¹⁸ I also told them about the gracious hand of my God on me and what the king had said to me.
They replied, “Let us start rebuilding.” So they began this good work. Faith in answered prayer can be contagious. Prayer often requires the action of follow through.
¹⁹ But when Sanballat the Horonite, Tobiah the Ammonite official and Geshem the Arab heard about it, they mocked and ridiculed us. “What is this you are doing?” they asked. “Are you rebelling against the king?” When people scoff at your call and answered prayer do you stop. Often times we will be ridiculed by our own friends,family or church members. We must be faithful to God who spoke to us and follow through.
²⁰ I answered them by saying, “The God of heaven will give us success. Faith in answered prayer builds confidence. Not in our abilities but in God's promises to follow though. We his servants will start rebuilding, but as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.”

Friends when was the last time you had a Nehemiah type day? My advice is to get going. The day has already started and it will be tomorrow soon and you might just miss out on God at work.

Love to all.
Marty