Mourning for Your City
“When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven” (Neh 1:4).
Nehemiah lived in the world of politics. He was a high ranking worker in the government of Babylon. His official title was cupbearer for King Artaxerxes. He would be considered the modern-day U.S. Secret Service agent who made sure the King was safe from being poisoned.
Judah had been driven into exile and some of his friends had just returned with news about his fellow brothers and sisters in Jerusalem.
In the month of Kislev in the twentieth year, while I was in the citadel of Susa, 2 Hanani, one of my brothers, came from Judah with some other men, and I questioned them about the Jewish remnant that survived the exile, and also about Jerusalem. They said to me, “Those who survived the exile and are back in the province are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire” (Neh 1:1-3).
Nehemiah’s response upon hearing the news is the kind of response that is necessary for a Christian leader to impact his or her city. He responded by weeping for the condition of his beloved city. He immediately went into prayer and asked for God’s direction on how he could be a positive impact on his city. He developed a strategy to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem. He accomplished the task in only fifty-two days.
Do you weep for your city? God is calling forth men and women from the marketplace today to be catalyst to impact their cities. Begin today to pray for your city and ask God how you can be a catalyst to rebuild the spiritual wall of your city.
