“So, the wall was completed on the twenty-fifth of Elul, in fifty-two days. When all our enemies heard about this, all the surrounding nations were afraid and lost their self-confidence, because they realized that this work had been done with the help of our God”. Nehemiah 6:15-16
Do you ever desire change in life? Some people might like to change the place that they live- they want a bigger home, to be in a different city, or have a nicer room. Others might want more finances, while some desire more time. Growing up, I wished I was shorter. I was always one of the tallest in the class due to such an early growth spurt. It was never hard to spot me out of the crowd because you could literally see me above the crowd. For a while, that is what I wanted to change.
God called Nehemiah to make a change. Nehemiah acted on the calling that God placed in his life, using the gifts and talents that he was given to accomplish the job of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. Although he faced trials, opposition, and a time of injustice, Nehemiah pursued and accomplished what he did by faith in the Lord and obedient action.
It is an interesting comment that the surrounding nations lost their confidence because of Nehemiah’s faith in the Lord. It can be a good thing to lose our confidence if our confidence is simply in ourselves. Nehemiah was an example to others to put their trust and confidence in the Lord instead of themselves. This was the true source of successful restoration.
Ultimately, the book of Nehemiah is about much more than the rebuilding of walls; it is about the rebuilding of lives produced by faith in God Almighty. In Nehemiah, as faith and obedience in God are exercised, the walls are rebuilt, and a nation is restored. We see an amazing picture of what can happen in our own lives through acts of faithful obedience to God. God may invite us to change some things we don’t want to change and call us to be at peace with certain things we can’t change. Will we release the restoration process into the Hands of God, knowing that God knows best?
What is God calling you to restore in your own life in response to faith in Him? Are you turning to God with a heart of openness? Are you releasing to God those things that you cannot change and experiencing His peace? What ways might God be leading you to act? God invites us to rebuild and restore our lives through faithful obedient action. May we, like Nehemiah, put our confidence in God and take the actions that He instructs us to take. With the help of our God, even the worst of situations can be restored.
