An Honoring from God

Scripture: Nehemiah 1:11

"O Lord, I beseech You, may Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant and the prayer of Your servants who delight to revere Your name, and make Your servant successful today and grant him compassion before this man." Now I was the cupbearer to the king.

Insights: The first brick of character we have been learning about all week is prayer.  A person of faith is going to be a prayer warrior.  On this final day this week we are going to see the four blessings God honors us with as a result of being people of prayer.  First, prayer makes you wait.  We, as people, are so quick to jump ahead and fight or run away from the minutest things.  Yet throughout Scripture, the first thing God wants us to do is stop, seek Him, and wait for His response.  Prayer does just that for us.  It helps us leave the situation with God.  Second, prayer clears your vision.  Just like the sun burns away the morning fog, so prayer burns away confusion.  When we go to the Father our perspective to the situation is better.  We are not so rash in our judgments because we begin to see things as He sees them.  This clearer vision changes everything.  Third, prayer quiets your heart.  In other words, it is impossible to worry and pray at the same time.  Prayer calms your spirit and replaces anxiety with peace.  How often are we like Martha and fret over the tiniest of things (Luke 10:41)?  Jesus tells us to come to Him and yoke up with Him because His burden is light (Matthew 11:30).  Let the peace of Jesus fill you full as you run to Him in prayer.  Finally, prayer activates your faith.  Beloved, how petty, negative and critical am I when I don’t pray?  When I pray, however, I am more prone to trust God and let all those negative faith-killing emotions and thoughts flee from my mind.  Prayer sets faith on fire and motivates us to obey God.  Nehemiah was such a man that had learned these four blessings with which God honors people of prayer.  Let me encourage you to start the day in prayer and throughout it seek the Father for these four blessings.  As you live life from this perspective, may God be glorified from the wall of faith you are allowing Him to build through you with bricks of character—character  like being a person of prayer.

Questions:

1. Are you waiting on God and letting Him quiet your heart?
2. Is your vision clearer so you are more prone to respond in faith?

Prayer: Father, thank You that You allow me to enter Your presence and make request to You.  Calm my spirit and make my way straight.  Then, O Lord, give me the courage to act on what You have revealed to me and be glorified as I live by faith.  Amen.