From Nehemiah

A cup bearer-what we might call a wine taster-definitely not a builder! One wonders in how many of our churches Nehemiah would be the one chosen to rebuild a ruined city! Do we measure our calling and our standing by what this world recognises as talent and super spirituals
call " giftings " ? It’s not what God looks for!!

In the opening part of this book we find Nehemiah in captivity dutifully serving his foreign masters and eagerly ferreting for news of Jerusalem. How fortunate that the messengers spoke truthfully of the devastation and ruin that had befallen the city-how often do we resort to exaggeration / glossing over the truth because it does not happen to match up with our faith and we do not know how to deal with it resulting in misinformation, deceit and misdirected prayer. Nehemiah’s response was also not something particularly familiar to many of us-to sit and weep, mourn and fast-rarely does a clip on the news or an article in the press seem to awaken such a deep cry from within.

But Nehemiah’s words in verse 6 reveal something quite extraordinary about the nature of his prayer life - " let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night. " - how on earth do you " hear " a prayer through your eyes? The answer seems to lie in this humble man’s life, his very actions and not just his words were a prayer to God. Could we dare to ask God to sanctify our actions so that they become as prayers unto Him that He sees? This is clearly not the fasting of the New Testament religious Pharisee, but the " done in secret " type that Jesus exhorts us to in the sermon on the mount.

There was no ducking responsibility either-Nehemiah aligned himself with his history and fellow countrymen and confessed the wickedness done-part of the weeping not just for what had happened but for why it had happened-Israel had had the power all along to keep their land intact and their children safe-it was rebellion and the embracing of the world’s ways that put them where they were. Yet Nehemiah knew His Scripture - and in his prayer he felt able to remind God of His promise to restore the nation if they would but repent. As he stands in the gap for Israel we read on in verse 10 how Nehemiah remembers too the faith of others who still revere the Lord’s name and does not elevate himself in any way. A great example of the power of agreement in prayer even when folk are apart. After this he formulates a plan to restore the city (verse 11) and then we get the bombshell re his qualifications for the job - " I was a cupbearer " !!!

God seems to have placed some of us in roles we do not feel qualified for, perhaps it is even as a parent or a neighbour, or as someone looking to reach his work colleague with the Gospel, someone getting involved in children’s ministry or encouraging / leading others in prayer-whatever simple or not so simple scenario how often have we said we can not because we are not? BUT if God has called then He will equip, slowly perhaps, painfully certainly but if a humble, repentant and fearful cupbearer can build a city could not we build our own Jerusalem in the roads we live, offices we go, families we visit?

Further examples of Nehemiah’s prayer life appear in chapter 2 verse 4, as he utters in a millisecond one of those " please help me God " prayers before the king who seemingly controlled his destiny. Well even I can do that! We know the story of the king’s agreement and we are reminded too that Nehemiah set a time for it to happen - the activation of faith into a plan. Are you called to do something that you know inside and have even planned out? Is your failing coming from not setting a time for it to happen?

The characters Nehemiah meets from then on (Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem) are reminders of the enemy’s schemes to stop us in our tracks-at first they mock and ridicule this cupbearer who has come as a builder. " How dare you - who do you think you are? " they cry - have you ever heard this said either from a fellow so-called believer or voice inside? And so the story unfolds.

So fellow " cupbearers ", let us speak truth, live a life that is a prayer to our Heavenly Father and take on board what He is calling us to, not what this control freaked world seeks to impose on us.

Grace and peace to you.