Today's Scripture
Stones In Our Path Nehemiah 2:1-8
In the month of Nisan, in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was served him, I carried the wine and gave it to the king. Now, I had never been sad in his presence before. 2 So the king said to me, “Why is your face sad, since you are not sick? This can only be sadness of the heart.” Then I was very much afraid. 3 I said to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should my face not be sad, when the city, the place of my ancestors’ graves, lies waste, and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” 4 Then the king said to me, “What do you request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, I ask that you send me to Judah, to the city of my ancestors’ graves, so that I may rebuild it.” 6 The king said to me (the queen also was sitting beside him), “How long will you be gone, and when will you return?” So it pleased the king to send me, and I set him a date. 7 Then I said to the king, “If it pleases the king, let letters be given me to the governors of the province Beyond the River, that they may grant me passage until I arrive in Judah; 8 and a letter to Asaph, the keeper of the king’s forest, directing him to give me timber to make beams for the gates of the temple fortress, and for the wall of the city, and for the house that I shall occupy.” And the king granted me what I asked, for the gracious hand of my God was upon me.
RJ's Devotion
What Does the Passage Say?
V. 1-4 Nehemiah, the wine bearer of the King of Persia, saddened because of the news, he heard about the destruction of Israel, was noticed by the king.
V. 5-8 The king asks what Nehemiah might need, and Nehemiah puts out a bold request to rebuild God’s city.
What Does the passage Mean to Me/US?
Do you see the hand of God working in this story?
In ch.1 Nehemiah heard about the destruction of God’s city and mourned. It says, “When I heard these words I sat down and wept, and mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven” (Nehemiah 1:4). He continued his prayer asking God what he should do.
Then he continues on in his daily duties, where the king of Persia noticed that something is bothering Nehemiah. Why would the king notice his servent’s face, if it wasn’t God’s hand?
Suprised by the question, Nehemiah pauses and prays to God for wisdom in his answers. And God gives him exactly what Nehemiah needs to say, and all requests were granted.
We don’t doubt what God can do, but sometimes, don’t we dismiss how our hearts need to prepare and open our hearts to follow God’s lead?
Prayer
Lord, we need to see your active work in our lives. Prepare our hearts to follow your lead, and see your mighty works. In Christ Name, we pray, AMEN.
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