Give Me An Opportunity!

We're 2 weeks into our series in Nehemiah at The Brook. As many times as I've read this story and memoir, one thing stands out to me that never struck me before. As Nehemiah learns of the destruction and devastation in his homeland - as he's broken to the point of mourning, weeping, fasting, and praying - he ultimately asks the Lord for 2 things: that God would hear the prayers of those who are seeking Him, and that God would grant him an opportunity. I encourage you to take 5 minutes and read Nehemiah 1. Essentially what Nehemiah cries out to the Lord for is that He would hear his heart - that his heart had been broken for the things that break the Father's heart - and that God would give him an opportunity to do something about it. Give me an opportunity!

We're good at praying for miracles - praying for God to take action or to do something on our behalf. But many times when we beg and plead for a miracle, maybe what we should be asking for is an opportunity. If you look at the lives of Joseph, Ezra, Nehemiah, Daniel, Esther - I could go on - you see a pattern: While these people all spent countless hours (even days, weeks, months) on their faces in prayer, one of the key things they were asking for was an opportunity. The faithful don't just want God to intervene - they want Him to intervene IN and THROUGH their lives - to be used by God to change the world around them. They didn't just want God's solution; they wanted to be part of the solution.

What's is God disrupting your heart over in this world?
Is He breaking your heart for the things that break His heart?
Do you see the change that needs to take place in your neighborhood? Your workplace? Your school? In the hearts and lives of your friends?

[Please, think long & hard about that last one.]

If so, are you asking God for an opportunity? 
Asking Him to ready, prepare, equip, and USE you to BE the solution?
He will. If you ask Him.