Inhale, Exhale
So, I prayed to the God of Heaven. And I said to the king. (Nehemiah 2:4, 5)
Neh. 2:1-8; Num. 14:8-9; Ps. 3:5-6 and 27:1-3; Ps. 119:147; Acts 4:18-19,29
What Is God Saying?
Nehemiah had an essential position in the Persian Court. He was the king's cupbearer. In Nehemiah's day, the cupbearer protected the king from poison. It was a thankless and dangerous position, but it carried a great honor. It meant tasting the wine before the king drank it. The man in that position had to be trusted by the king and would have quick and easy access to him. Nevertheless, it took courage for Nehemiah to speak to the king, especially when he had a kingdom-shaking request. After praying to God, Nehemiah was ready to talk to the king: "He prayed to the God of Heaven, and said to the King."
How Does This Apply To Us?
When we have the assurance that God is for us, we won't fear what man can do to us. We won't crumble before man's criticism if we have God's approval. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" Instead of going to others unprepared and afraid of sounding weak or foolish, we first go to God in humility and faith. We won't say the foolish thing when we have heard the wise thing from God. We won't say false things when exposed to the truth. We won't yield in the weakness of compromise when the strength of commitment to God supports us. We can speak the truth in love to anyone when we truly know God loves us.
Pray With Me
Give me the confidence of Nehemiah, Lord, as he prayed to God and spoke to kings. With authority and grace from above, I don't have to fear human arrogance and malice. Having bowed before You, I need never bow before others. Now I see that when my relationships break down with others, it is because they have first broken down with You. Let this rhythm never be interrupted: to God in prayer, to humans with power, and back again to God in prayer. As the peace of night follows the labor of day, I come to You. I come from the demands of my daily life that I may find greater strength and calmer wisdom. I can go again to the world from You, armed with Your truth and upheld by Your love.
When I come to You in prayer, let my heart be filled with a small portion of Your limitless love as my lungs are filled each moment with a small portion of the limitless air. Then I shall go before humans—not in pride and judgment, but with the desire to love and to serve in the Spirit of my Master, who came from Heaven, the very God of Heaven, to save all kings and all subjects, all princes and all paupers, all people for all time.
In His wonderful name. Amen.
Moving On In The Life of Prayer
So much of our prayer life concerns our relationship with others. How do we react to failures by others? Where do we find the courage to ask forgiveness from those we have wronged? How do we act when we have been betrayed or mistreated on the human level? Where do we find the courage to offer our support, to make the right choice? Time and again, what happens in the silence of prayer will result in spoken words. When we pray to the God of Heaven, we can talk to people we need to love on earth. Pray to God; speak to others. In to God; out to others. Take God's hand and start walking. Hear God's word and start talking. Inhale, exhale.
That's it. That's prayer. That's life.
