Read Nehemiah 1:4-11. Before Nehemiah ever began to even think about rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, he first made himself totally available to God and to whatever God wanted him to do. In fact prayer always precedes forward progress when building the kingdom of God and in these verses we see that the first thing Nehemiah did was to put himself into the awesome yet loving hands of God.

• How does your conscience remind you of God and God’s presence in your life?
• Have you ever carried or now carry God’s pain about something wrong in this world? What was/is it?

Read Genesis 17:7 & Reread Nehemiah 1:5. One thing that Nehemiah knew was that we live in this beautiful tension of the rightful fear of God and incredible love of God. God is the ultimate authority and deserves our ultimate respect but is also a God of great love and unbreakable covenant. It is in understanding this relationship with God that we realize we are chosen servants of God, seeking to do God’s purposes.

• Do you struggle more with having a healthy fear of God or knowing that God loves you deeply?
• How do both of these help you serve God?

Not only does prayer help us see our status as God’s servants, it also reveals where we have broken trust in our relationship with God. In Nehemiah’s prayer we see that he not only confessed the sins of his heart, but also of his family, and country. Spending time in God’s presence is the only place where we can realign our hearts to proper thoughts, motives, actions and the life God calls for us to live.

• Can you say you trust God in every area of your life? Can God trust you?
• Can you remember a time your devotionals or prayers pushed you to realign your heart or actions back to God? Explain.

Reread Nehemiah 1:11. Prayer not only leads to personal confession but also to purpose clarity. It leads us to ask “Is this God’s plans I’m seeking or my plans that I want God to bless.” Just like Moses who said “If God doesn’t go before us, we won’t go at all,” (read Exodus 33:15) we too should ask if God is God of our plans and what would God have us pursue. God calls us to trust and obey, but it is also God who literally makes the way for us to succeed.

• Do you normally pray that God would bless your plans or that you would fulfill God’s plans? Explain.
• Describe a time or situation that you realized the outcome ultimately depended upon God. What happened?

If we learn anything from Nehemiah’s prayer it’s that prayer in not an end in itself but a prelude to action. Just as God broke Nehemiah’s heart, God also raised Nehemiah up to do the purpose God had chosen him to do, rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.

• Do you normally pray that God would act or that God would use you to act? Has your prayer time ever led you to act on God’s behalf? Describe.
• How much time will you commit to prayer this week? Who will keep you accountable to your commitment?