The famous 19th-century evangelist Dwight L Moody was once asked: ‘if you knew that the Lord was coming back in 25 years, how would you spend it?’ Moody replied: ‘I’d spend the first 20 years of that time in prayer.’
When I first read that a few years ago, I found it profoundly challenging. I am inclined to be an activist. I like to get lots of things done in a day, and find a certain satisfaction in ‘being busy’. But – as my old mentor used to asked me – am I busy, or fruitful? And what would turn the former into the latter?
There are a number of answers to that question – but you’ll have guessed what one of them is!
As we take a second look at the first chapter of Nehemiah, we need to admit that Nehemiah is rightly known as a person of action. He wouldn’t be the king’s cupbearer if he wasn’t. The rest of the book likewise makes it abundantly clear that he is someone who gets things done – usually quickly and displaying great organisational skills. Nehemiah is often used as a model for leadership – and rightly so.
But, before he is a person of action, Nehemiah is a person of prayer. His first response to the news about his homeland is striking: (v4) ‘For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven.’ He doesn’t just do something, anything – he seeks the Lord. He waits on God, he prays. He needs to know what the Lord’s will is – and then he acts.
Nehemiah’s prayer is one of the great prayers of the bible – a model prayer, you could say. If you like to use the acronym P-R-A-Y to help you pray, then this prayer is a perfect biblical example:
P – Praise: Nehemiah begins (v5), ‘Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God…’ Nehemiah thanks God for his faithfulness, before he does anything else.
R – Repentance: (vv6-7) ‘I confess the sins… we have acted very wickedly…’
A – Ask: (vv8-9) ‘Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses… if you return to me… I will… bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’
And finally, having done all that, we get to the practical prayer for himself:
Y – ‘Yourself’ (v11) ‘Give your servant success today by granting him favour in the presence of this man.’
It’s a wonderful prayer, and we don’t have to wait long to see what happens – the very next chapter, which we’ll look at tomorrow. But as we reflect today, may Nehemiah’s example inspire us in our prayers. It’s right to ask God for things, Jesus encourages us to do exactly that; but the central focus of our prayer is always the Lord himself. Nehemiah retains a profound awareness of the greatness of God, and this makes him both fervent and bold in prayer. May we, too, pray as he did – for whatever is on our hearts today.