Don't Quit Prayer

4 When I heard these words, I sat down and wept. I mourned for a number of days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven. 5 I said, Yahweh, the God of heaven, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps His gracious covenant with those who love Him and keep His commands, 6 let Your eyes be open and Your ears be attentive to hear Your servant’s prayer that I now pray to You day and night for Your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we have committed against You. Both I and my father’s house have sinned. 7 We have acted corruptly toward You and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances You gave Your servant Moses. 8 Please remember what You commanded Your servant Moses: “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples. 9 But if you return to Me and carefully observe My commands, even though your exiles were banished to the ends of the earth, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I chose to have My name dwell.” 10 They are Your servants and Your people. You redeemed them by Your great power and strong hand. 11 Please, Lord, let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and to that of Your servants who delight to revere Your name. Give Your servant success today, and have compassion on him in the presence of this man. At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer. 1 During the month of Nisan in the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes, when wine was set before him, I took the wine and gave it to the king. I had never been sad in his presence, 2 so the king said to me, “Why are you sad, when you aren’t sick? This is nothing but depression.” I was overwhelmed with fear 3 and replied to the king, “May the king live forever! Why should I not be sad when the city where my ancestors are buried lies in ruins and its gates have been destroyed by fire?” 4 Then the king asked me, “What is your request?” So I prayed to the God of heaven 5 and answered the king, “If it pleases the king, and if your servant has found favor with you, send me to Judah and to the city where my ancestors are buried, so that I may rebuild it.”

Arrow Prayer

Arrows give direction and show us the way to go. They have a point and they are direct and deadly. We can use these arrow prayers when we are in desperate situations and we lift our souls to God in simple and secret thought.

My example of an arrow prayer

I was 24 years old and got a call from a parent and student in the ministry. I was told about a situation going on in their home and they invited me to come over and help them.

I was about to hit the door and I had no clue what I was doing or why I was really there.

I prayed James 1 on the way in.

Lord I need wisdom and I need it now. Ok I don’t have time to doubt and thank you Lord, now! Let’s Go!

Long Communication prayer

Marriage the difference between arrow comments and longer communication

Nehemiah 1:5 HCSB

5 I said, Yahweh, the God of heaven, the great and awe-inspiring God who keeps His gracious covenant with those who love Him and keep His commands,

The Last thing the enemy wants you to do is look up to God in prayer when you feel like giving in or giving up. Here Nehemiah looks up in prayer as his heart is broken.

Nehemiah prays scripture. We need to get back to this spiritual discipline of praying scripture.

Nehemiah starts his prayer by looking up. He cries out Our Father who art in Heaven.

Yahweh (Lord): Speaks of His covenant relationship to Israel

God of Heaven: Refers to His Sovereignty

Great and awesome: Are mindful of His power and majesty

He prays scripture

Deuteronomy 7:9 HCSB

9 Know that Yahweh your God is God, the faithful God who keeps His gracious covenant loyalty for a thousand generations with those who love Him and keep His commands.

Nehemiah prays scripture. When is the last time you prayed scripture?

Nehemiah uses the word of the Lord as he speaks to the Lord. God you are the God who is faithful and Keeps His gracious covenant for a thousand generations to those who love Him and keep His commands.

Nehemiah 1:6–7 HCSB

6 let Your eyes be open and Your ears be attentive to hear Your servant’s prayer that I now pray to You day and night for Your servants, the Israelites. I confess the sins we have committed against You. Both I and my father’s house have sinned. 7 We have acted corruptly toward You and have not kept the commands, statutes, and ordinances You gave Your servant Moses.

Look at the humility of Nehemiah, he says let your eyes be open and your ears be attentive to hear your SERVANT’S prayer. He then also identifies the Israelites as SERVANT’S.

This is very much an attitude of humility to list himself as a Servant. As you approach the Lord in prayer, we come before him in humility as a servant.

This is an opposite to entitlement. Jesus you owe it to me because I have suffered for you.

This approach is Jesus I am your servant.

He then confesses his own sin, the sin of his house, and the sin of the nation many whom he has never met.

Did you catch that he confessed his own sin, the sin of his house and the sin of the nation of Israel many whom he never has met.

We live in a day where no one wants to take responsibility for anything. We also see this in our nations leaders of constantly blaming others and not take responsibility.

Nehemiah says Lord I have sinned, my family has sinned and our Nation has sinned.

Nehemiah 1:8 HCSB

8 Please remember what You commanded Your servant Moses: “If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the peoples.

Again Nehemiah refers back to the promises God made with Moses in Deuteronomy

Deuteronomy 4:25–31 HCSB

25 “When you have children and grandchildren and have been in the land a long time, and if you act corruptly, make an idol in the form of anything, and do what is evil in the sight of the Lord your God, provoking Him to anger, 26 I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you today that you will quickly perish from the land you are about to cross the Jordan to possess. You will not live long there, but you will certainly be destroyed. 27 The Lord will scatter you among the peoples, and you will be reduced to a few survivors among the nations where the Lord your God will drive you. 28 There you will worship man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see, hear, eat, or smell. 29 But from there, you will search for the Lord your God, and you will find Him when you seek Him with all your heart and all your soul. 30 When you are in distress and all these things have happened to you, you will return to the Lord your God in later days and obey Him. 31 He will not leave you, destroy you, or forget the covenant with your fathers that He swore to them by oath, because the Lord your God is a compassionate God.

Nehemiah 1:9–10 HCSB

9 But if you return to Me and carefully observe My commands, even though your exiles were banished to the ends of the earth, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place where I chose to have My name dwell.” 10 They are Your servants and Your people. You redeemed them by Your great power and strong hand.

Nehemiah believes in the people as well. Nehemiah is a leader and he not only believes in God and what God will do for him but he also believes this prayer for others as well.

He prays and says they are your servants and your people. You redeemed them by your great power and strong hand.

Tim Edwards in his book Generation Z Unfiltered describes how we have went from a community parenting model to a competition parenting model

Community: everyone strives to raise the community kids together.

Competition: Every parent competes with other parents to ensure their children have what other children have. You strive to give your children a better life than their peers.

This competition has caused us to turn inwardly and lose focus on the whole of the community.

Nehemiah believes in the people. They are your servants and your people. You God redeemed them by your great power and strong hand.

Losing faith in others is a driver to us wanting to quit. God they will never change and their is no hope for them so we quit.

Nehemiah in his prayer did not do this.

Nehemiah 1:11 HCSB

11 Please, Lord, let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and to that of Your servants who delight to revere Your name. Give Your servant success today, and have compassion on him in the presence of this man. At the time, I was the king’s cupbearer.

Be Determined Chapter One: Does Anybody Really Care? (Nehemiah 1)

Nehemiah couldn’t simply quit his job and move to Jerusalem. He was an appointee of the king, and he needed the king’s permission for everything he did. Furthermore, he needed the king’s provision and protection so he could travel to Jerusalem and remain away from his post until the work was completed. Without official authority to govern, an official guard for the journey, and the right to use materials from the king’s forest, the entire project was destined to fail.

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