BrickByBrick: Nehemiah Series #1

A few weeks ago we began a new series on the book of Nehemiah.

The goal of this series is to learn how to discern what Gods vision for our lives is and how we allow Him to work His vision through us.

During the first week in the book of Nehemiah, we looked at the concept of inspiration and the three prominent things that it consists of.  We learned that those three things are concern, patience, and prayer.

#1 Concern

Every vision that we have is driven by a concern.  The only reason we have a vision at all is because we see something that is not the way it should be, or maybe not the way that it could be.  This concern drives us into a picture of something that is better than the present.  Concerns surround us.  Our relationships can be better, the amount of debt we are in could be less, we could be reaching more lost people and sharing the good news of the Gospel with them.  They surround us.

#2  Patience

A lot of the time, we see a concern and we want to get to work right away.  We could be in the midst of a separation with our spouse, and we want to fix the separation right away.  But, what we have to realize is that most of the time we have no power and no control over the situations we face.  What is even more important to realize is that God does have the power to change our situations.  For, as Paul tells us in Romans, "All things work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose."

#3  Prayer

Since we know that God has the power to change situations and we do not, it is important to spend the majority of time in prayer.  Prayer concerning the vision that God has placed in our lives should be centered around the will of God.  Often, we come up with great ideas, and we see wonderful things that could happen, but yet we lack the anguish that is necessary.  We lack the broken heart that it takes to actually make a difference.  The anguish and the broken heart should be present because we see things the way they are and we desire them to be different in order to glorify God.  But, our desire should be the same as Gods desire.  As the Psalmist says, "Delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart."  If we delight in the Lord, our desires will become the same as His desires.  This happens the most through prayer.  As we immerse ourselves in the will of God, we will become people who want to take part in the vision of God.

These three steps are the most crucial to the vision that God may be placing in our lives.  Don't forget them.  Concern. Patience. Prayer.