When God Leads God Provides
Nehemiah is a very encouraging example to us! He shows us what to do when our
hearts are heavy with a burden. This reminds us of what we have also learned from
the book of James. When you don’t know what to do, do what you know is
right to do until God shows more what you are to do. In other words, you have
been taught truth from the Lord through His word. Do what you know that is right to
do until God gives you more information about what you are to do. For four months,
Nehemiah simply prayed, went to work, and took care of business. He didn’t
quit. He didn’t go off the deep end. He didn’t go on a hunger strike. He didn’t start a
Go-Fund-Me page. He just continued to do what he knew he should do. His burden
for his fellow Jews in Jerusalem was heavy. He didn’t quit his job and head to
Jerusalem. He just stayed the course, and he waited for God to open a door of
opportunity for him. After four months of praying, weeping, and mourning over
the situation in Jerusalem, his opportunity came. This was not the result of some
plan on Nehemiah’s part. He didn’t get up and say to himself, “I will go before the
king today and look sad to see if he will notice.” His burden over Jerusalem was so
heavy it showed up in his face. He just went to work, and he was doing what he
always did when the king noticed that he was burdened about something.
When God opens a door, He is providing you a path to accomplish His purpose in your
life. I read in mydailydevotions.com that there are three ways to know if an “open
door” is from God: 1. It never contradicts scripture 2. God will give you
confirmation. By seeking wise counsel, praying, fasting, and studying the Bible we
can get confirmation that this really is from the Lord. 3. It requires us to totally
depend on Him to see us through.
Nehemiah’s burden fit that pattern. It did not contradict scripture. He certainly
received confirmation, and it required him to totally depend upon the Lord.
As our Bible reading begins, Nehemiah is in a bit of a sketchy situation. To
anyone looking in on Nehemiah’s conversation with the king, it would have been clear
that Nehemiah had just placed himself in a life or death situation. It was
unlawful to be sad in the presence of the king. Let’s listen closely as we see God
turn this frightening situation into an obvious blessing.
1 Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan, during the twentieth
year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never
before appeared sad in his presence.
2 So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to
me. You must be deeply troubled.” Then I was terrified,
3 but I replied, “Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where
my ancestors are buried is in ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by
fire.”
4 The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?” With a prayer to the God of
heaven,
5 I replied, “If it please the king, and if you are pleased with me, your
servant, send me to Judah to rebuild the city where my ancestors are
buried.”
6 The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked, “How long will you be
gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the
king agreed to my request.
7 I also said to the king, “If it please the king, let me have letters addressed
to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing
them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah.
8 And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s
forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the
gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.”
And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was
on me.
- Why was Nehemiah able to meet with the king? How were Nehemiah’s actions
different than in the past? (2:1)
1 Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan, during the twentieth
year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never
before appeared sad in his presence.
Nehemiah was in front of the king on a regular basis. This was his job. He served
wine to the king and to the king’s guests. At times, he tasted the wine to make sure
that no one had poisoned it. This was a very high ranking position. The king trusted
his cup bearer to guard the king’s well being. This would have been a relationship
of mutual respect between two people who were in very different social standings.
Nehemiah tells us that he had never been sad in the king’s presence before. I am
convinced that Nehemiah would have never tried to put on a sad face for the
king. In fact, I believe he would have tried hard to not look sad. However, his
burden for his fellow-Jews was beginning to show in face, whether he wanted it to or
not. This was God at work, not Nehemiah at work. - What did the king ask Nehemiah? How did Nehemiah describe his problem to the
king? (2:2-3)
2 So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to
me. You must be deeply troubled.” Then I was terrified, 3 but I replied,
“Long live the king! How can I not be sad? For the city where my ancestors
are buried is in ruins, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.”
The king naturally assumed that Nehemiah was sick and deeply troubled. The fact
that the king noticed his disposition terrified Nehemiah, but his quick response to the
king was to tell the truth. He told the king that he was sad over the conditions in
Jerusalem. It was forbidden to be sad in the presence of the king. Nehemiah had
carried out his duties for months without looking sad, but on this day his sadness was
too much to hide. Talk about drama in the court! What was about to happen? Will
the king punish Nehemiah, or will the king help Nehemiah?
- What did Nehemiah do before he told the king what he wanted? What does this
situation teach us about how God uses our relationships of mutual respect with people
across socio-economic lines?( 2:4 -5)
4 The king asked, “Well, how can I help you?” With a prayer to the God of
heaven,
5 I replied, “If it please the king, and if you are pleased with me, your
servant, send me to Judah to rebuild the city where my ancestors are
buried.”
Nehemiah’s situation deepens when the king responds with a question, “Well, how
can I help you?”
Nehemiah knows what to do when you don’t know what to do. He prayed!
And he told the king what had really been placed on his heart. He wanted to be
sent to Jerusalem to rebuild the city. This is a great reminder that some of our
best prayers are really quick prayers. No time for long, formal conversations with
God. We just cry out to Him as go. We have a desperate need. We know to Whom
we can go. And it is not awkward to us, it is what we do. We pray without ceasing.
Do you think this whole situation was made easier because of the social
capital Nehemiah had with the king? Yes, the king trusted Nehemiah with his life.
He knew Nehemiah to be a man of integrity and trust. - What can you learn from Nehemiah about the role prayer should play in your
everyday life?
Prayer sets the tone and focus for our day.
Prayer reminds us who we are, and Whose we are.
Prayer helps us to see the activity of God all around us.
Prayer helps us to remain calm in difficult situations.
Prayer gets in the right frame of mind to stay on the right path and do the right
things.
Prayer helps us to make better decisions.
Philippians 4:6-7 – 6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about
everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then
you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand.
His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus. - Why did Nehemiah ask that letters be sent to the governors of Trans-Euphrates?
(2:6-7)
6 The king, with the queen sitting beside him, asked, “How long will you be
gone? When will you return?” After I told him how long I would be gone, the
king agreed to my request.
7 I also said to the king, “If it please the king, let me have letters addressed
to the governors of the province west of the Euphrates River, instructing
them to let me travel safely through their territories on my way to Judah.
When you spend time in the king’s palace like Nehemiah did, you see how important
networking with other people really is. Nehemiah knew he needed the help of the
governors and other officials if he was going to collect all the materials and supplies
he needed. God had opened the doors. It was clear to Nehemiah that the Lord
was in charge in this situation, so he just asked for everything he needed.
- How did Nehemiah explain the generosity of the king? (2:8)
8 And please give me a letter addressed to Asaph, the manager of the king’s
forest, instructing him to give me timber. I will need it to make beams for the
gates of the Temple fortress, for the city walls, and for a house for myself.”
And the king granted these requests, because the gracious hand of God was
on me.
Nehemiah recognized that this was God at work on King Artaxeres. It was clear to
Nehemiah that God had guided the king’s heart in the decision to help Nehemiah. It
is plain to me that the old saying is true, “When God leads, God provides.” In
fact, the story of the Garage Church is just one more story about the generous
provision of God. For almost 12 years now, God has provided when we could not.
Our business model for starting a church must look like the worst plan ever. We were
convinced that if we would focus on making disciples of Jesus, God would take care of
the rest. He would build the church. He would provide. - How did Nehemiah demonstrate his dependence on God?
He prayed to the Lord. He waited on the Lord’s timing. He kept his eyes on the
burden God had laid on his heart. He was committed to being obedient to God.
He continued to do what he had been given opportunity to do (serve the king) until
God showed him what he was to do next. - In what situations in your life do you need to depend more on the Lord?
We are to continually seek the Lord in all that we do.
Every decision we make should be the result of answered prayer.