WAITING & PRAYING

This past Sunday we wrapped up our series, Nehemiah :: Rebuilding. Spending the last 2 1/2 months studying, praying, and preaching through this book of the Bible has been incredibly challenging, encouraging, and renewing. I wanted to share some thoughts from the final message and just from the series overall. If you weren't there this past Sunday, I encourage you to take some time and listen to the message, "Bring the Best". Click HERE to listen.

The Cliffs Notes version of Nehemiah would go something like this: God gives Nehemiah a vision for rebuilding the walls and gates of Jerusalem. God grants Nehemiah an opportunity to pursue this vision with the help of the King of Persia. The Lord empowers His people to carry out and fulfill this vision - in a very short time - with great opposition - from outside and within. God shows His constant power and provision for His people! Through this, the people begin to hunger and desire to KNOW God and make Him KNOWN. They place His Word as the 1st priority in their lives. This leads to a series of things happening:

• They are broken over their sin - begin confessing & repenting of their sin.
• They worship God with humble, thankful, & grateful hearts.
• They are changed & transformed.
• They make a commitment to walk with the Lord & serve Him only!

And ALL of this - every piece of that puzzle - every step of that journey - began with one man being given a vision by God to physically, tangibly rebuild some broken down walls. But when the Lord gave Nehemiah this burden and conviction - when He planted this vision in Nehemiah's heart and mind - it wasn't the time to act on it. God told Nehemiah WHAT, but He didn't reveal HOW or even WHEN. And this brought what was possibly the greatest test of them all - the one that renders most of us unfaithful and disobedient: the test of WAITING & PRAYING.

Nehemiah spent a minimum of 4 months speaking of his vision to no one - no one except the Lord, that is. And once he revealed it to the King and asked for his assistance, then finally traveled to Jerusalem, had opportunity to meet the opposition, and carry on a full-scale inspection of the walls, he still "had not yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials, and the rest who were to do the work." He waited. And he prayed. And he waited. And he prayed....

What vision is God laying on your heart for His Kingdom?

Do you have the ears to hear Him? The heart to obey Him?

Do you have the faith to believe that He can accomplish anything through you?

And maybe the biggest question of them all for you and I to answer: 

Will we follow Nehemiah's example and patiently pursue the heart of God?

Will we endure the WAITING & PRAYING?

For those of you who are part of our church family at The Brook, it has never been more evident that the Lord is growing our church and our city. We know that He has placed us here to worship, grow, and serve...together! We are here - in this city, right now - to "Bring His Kingdom Everywhere We Go!" But we are also waiting to see what He has in store for us. We are praying - that in HIS timing - He will reveal the next steps to us. I hope you will join us in the WAITING & PRAYING!

*There are still BRICKS available for you to take home as a reminder to join us in this journey!