| Subject: Does GOD have a work for you? |
Author:
Vicky
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Date Posted: 03:17:18 02/03/06 Fri
Good morning ladies. I want to look this morning at Nehemiah 2. Let's start with verse 4. The king said to me, "What is it you want?" Then I prayed to the GOD of heaven, and I answered the king..." In verses 5-8 Nehemiah made specific requests to the king of Babylon, and in each case the king agreed to give Nehemiah what he had requested. Let's stop here for a minute and think about this whole exchange. The king asked Nehemiah what he wanted and Nehemiah prayed before he responded. He didn't pray a long lengthy prayer...I believe it was a quick prayer in his heart, "O FATHER, give me the right words here." After this quick prayer Nehemiah laid his requests before the king.
Stop and read the first 9 verses of this chapter.
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 fathers are buried lies in ruins, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?"
4 The king said to me, "What is it you want?" Then I prayed to the God of heaven,
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 fathers 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.
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 king's forest, 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?" And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests.
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.
I wonder this morning how this might have turned out had Nehemiah not prayed the prayer he prayed in chapter one. Ladies, he sought the face of the KING of Kings BEFORE he went to the ruling official. He didn't go in and ask the king to do something for him that he had not already sought the face of his GOD about. If you will look back to chapter one you will notice that Nehemiah had SPECIFICALLY asked for success by being granted favor in the eyes of the king. It was a capitol offense to enter the kings presence with a sad countenance. GOD granted Nehemiah favor in the eyes of the king because HE had found favor in the eyes of GOD.
Nehemiah had it in his heart to go back to Jerusalem and rebuild the city. He had a passion, a big dream, but ladies he realized that he could not accomplish this dream without the hand of GOD on his life. He specifically said in the last part of verse 8 that the king had granted his requests because THE HAND OF HIS GOD WAS UPON HIM. Ladies, this is true in our lives today too. Has GOD put a big dream in your heart? Has HE given you a passion to do something for HIM? Ask HIM to lead you and to direct your steps and give you success in the endeavor, and then get busy. Nehemiah was now headed to Jerusalem, with permission from the king, protection by the king, and the provision of the king. He had these things because he had first gone to THE KING of Kings and gotten them from HIM.
Does this ring true in our lives today? I believe that too often we head off in a direction that seems good, but we haven't stopped to ask GOD for his favor, we haven't asked for HIS permission, protection, and provision in the matter.
Think about this over the weekend. Ask the FATHER to show you what HE would like to use you to accomplish. Ask HIM to put in your heart what HE has for you to do and then get busy asking HIM to provide the opportunity for this work. Ladies, HE did not leave us here to sit and soak...HE left us here to do a work for HIM. How about it? Are we working?
I leave you this morning by simply encouraging you to seek HIS face during the next few days and ask HIM to put you to work.
Have a great weekend!
In HIS Grip-
Vicky
Psalm 119:10
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