What is that unique work that God wants to do through you?
As we look at the Scriptures in relation to our world, one thing is always consistent: God sees injustice. It reflects who he is as the One and only Righteous Ruler. Looking down from heaven and throughout the earth, God picks servants to pick up his mantle. But what specifically is God calling you and I to take on? That’s the question we need to answer.
For the present and future, I think everyone can glean from Nehemiah’s vision process. The “cup bearer to the king” journeyed though a certain progression. Nehemiah chapter one can be synthesized as: (1) See it, (2) Weep it, and (3) Pray it. Let’s unpack why we must follow suit.
First, you must see the deficiency. As Nehemiah described firsthand the dire condition of God’s beloved city with its broken down walls, you have got to size the situation with utter clarity. You will know it is clear when you you can write it out descriptively. When God gave me the assignment of penning Soul Whisperer, I did not see Jerusalem’s walls breached, but rather “The messaging frontline was lost” (in the personal realm of the church, for sure). Running headfirst into this hole, I saw how this was indeed the case.
Is it time to walk the rubble and kick some stones? Don’t underestimate the power of this birthing piece. You have to see it. What is missing? What is happening that is wrong? What are the consequences to lives, the kingdom and God’s glory? Do your research. Dig in. Get your eyes opened to and wrapped around the problem, first.
Then to summon the emotional courage for the fight, you must weep it. Nehemiah was physically shaken; he even had to sit down (vs. 4). It gets personal as you dwell in it. Make sure you feel viscerally: the hurt in lives, the list of need, the lack of hope, the loss of purpose. What is it like to live in those shoes? Why is your corrective vision so urgent? Tears are rare to modern people. We could grow by taking a page from the past. Weep it.
Last, we must pray it. Not the standard dinner prayer, mind you, but a plea of desperation seeking the God of heaven to come down for his cause. “Oh God, I am here to do your work in rectifying this evil; this thing that cannot be.” Don’t be shy. Pound on the door! Enter the Holy of Holies. Ask boldly for his favor and provision. He is, after all, as Nehemiah learned, able to move the hearts of kings! When you come with an inspired vision, he will bring you all that you need to fulfill his heavenly appointed task.
If you work the whole sequence, you will be commissioned from on high. Of course, the leading that materializes must come from the Lord. Ask him for his divinely ordained work. You’ll know his answer, if it’s big. Work the steps. Be willing to have him forge you for the assignment.
Thank you in advance for advancing his cause.