Living a Life of Impact: Prepare Through Prayer

A God-given vision must be empowered by passionate prayer.  We live in a day and age when we are told that we must be self-reliant and self-motivated.  While these are certainly great character traits, they will be insufficient to accomplish a God-sized task or make a God-size impact.

These are truths that Nehemiah recognized.  As a result, the bulk of the first chapter of Nehemiah is a prayer that is recorded for us.  In fact, it is the first of twelve prayers recorded in this book (1:4-10, 2:4, 4:4-5, 4:9, 5:19, 6:19, 6:9, 6:14, 9:5, 13:14, 13:29, and 13:31).  Suffice it to say, Nehemiah was a man of prayer.

While there are a number of prayers that are recorded in this book, it is this first prayer alone that offers us an approach to prayer.  As we examine Nehemiah's prayer, we discover a pattern that will help us to be balanced in our own prayer life.

Praise to God
Nehemiah begins his prayer (v. 5) by praising God for who He is.  Nehemiah is not trying to convince God to do something He doesn't want to do.  Nor, is Nehemiah trying to use flattery to get his way.  As we offer praise and thanksgiving to God, we are reminded of who He is and what He has done, thus giving us confidence related to what lies ahead.

Confession of Sin
After offering praise to God for His greatness, Nehemiah turns his attention to the confession of sin (vs. 6-7).  It is important to not the pronouns that Nehemiah uses.  He does not blame the people of Israel alone, but includes himself.  We must be honest with God about where we have failed and where we have fallen short.

Claim God's Promises
Once again, this is an area where we need to be careful in our approach.  Nehemiah is not trying to remind God of something He forgot or to hold God's feet to the fire about some promise made in the past.  Nehemiah is ultimately reminding himself of what God has said He would do.  It is in the promises of God that we find a great amount of confidence and our prayers are empowered.

Make Your Request
How often in prayer do we rush straight to this task?  We skip praise, we ignore our sin, we choose not to consider what God's word says, and rush straight to our request.  Nehemiah was not guilty of such a thing.  Only when he has exalted God to his proper place, dealt with his own sin, and considered God's promises, does he make his request.  Let us do the same.

Prayer is not easy.  There is a reason that we have taken to calling it a discipline.  However, prayer is well worth the effort.  One would be hard pressed to find and man or woman, that has been effective for the Kingdom, that was not a man or woman of prayer.

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