Nehemiah #9 - Continuing Prayer
Just to recap: Nehemiah has been through a process of prayer: He had fasted, humbled himself, and mourned over his people's brokenness and God gave him a plan. It was a plan that was both daring and terrifying. Nehemiah was the cup-bearer of the king - he had earned the king's trust and favour, but he was still a slave and it was the job of the cup-bearer to keep the king in good spirits (literally and figuratively :-D ;-) ).When Nehemiah went into the king's presence with a sad face, he took a huge risk. When the king enquired, Nehemiah answered that he was sad because of the sad state of his home city. When the king did the unthinkable by asking "What is it that you want?", Nehemiah sent up an arrow prayer before he answered.
Having sent up the arrow prayer, Nehemiah then boldly requested permission to take leave, to rebuild the city, and to get supplies of timber from the king's stores. And the king agreed!!! Nehemiah knew why: "And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests."
There is one more aspect: When we bring things to God in prayer and He gives us a plan, the plan often means that we have an active part to play in the answer of the prayer. Nehemiah had to take a risk - he had to open his mouth - he had to stick his neck out. This is part of how God includes us in His work, and there are some prayers we should not even bother praying unless we are willing to be part of the answer...
So, looking at Nehemiah's prayer life, we see four kinds of prayer:
- Prevailing prayer: Praying, Fasting, and Listening until one has idea of God's plan
- The Prayer of commitment/surrender in which one buys into God's plan commits it all to Him
- Lived out prayers where our actions of obedience, courage and love are the prayers that speak louder than words
- Prayers in the midst of the process so that every step of the plan is executed with God's help and the awareness of our need for His help.
| The King said to me, What is it that you want? Then I prayed to the God of heaven and I answered "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 fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it." (Nehemiah2:4) |
