40 Days Of Prayer - Day 35

Nehemiah 8:9-12
"Then Nehemiah the governor, Ezra the priest and teacher of the Law, and the Levites who were instructing the people said to them all, “This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn or weep.” For all the people had been weeping as they listened to the words of the Law.
Nehemiah said, “Go and enjoy choice food and sweet drinks, and send some to those who have nothing prepared. This day is holy to our Lord. Do not grieve, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.”
The Levites calmed all the people, saying, “Be still, for this is a holy day. Do not grieve.”
Then all the people went away to eat and drink, to send portions of food and to celebrate with great joy, because they now understood the words that had been made known to them."

Do not mourn. Do not weep. Do not grieve. Instead celebrate with great joy.

“The Joy of the Lord is your strength”(Nehemiah 8:10 ). The people here were acutely aware of their sin and this caused them to mourn. However, they are being told that they can walk in joy because of the great work God is doing. You see our emotions are not beyond our control. We can do God’s will even when we don’t feel like it.

Secondly, they went and celebrated (with joy) because they understood a bit more of God. It is so easy to replay the lies in our heads of who we are, our shame, our short falls or sins. That, however, is not our God. We can have hope and strength because we know Him. We know His grace and His mercy.

We can have strength because our strength is from the Lord and what He is doing. So, take heart New Hope. Get ready and be strong as we move forward today and in the years to come.

Written by Nathan Braun