If my people will humble themselves

The story of Nehemiah is one that has many lessons for us.  As Nehemiah heard of the devastation back home, the destruction of the city and the danger those who survived the exile were in, he wept, he fasted, and he sought God, confessing the sins of the nation and reminding God of the covenant He had made with Moses.

When reading this yesterday I thought about the devastation we face in the 21st century. The devastation due to the assault on the gender and sexual identity of this generation.  So many young people are being affirmed in gender and sexuality confusion, often with devastating results.  Families are being torn apart, parents are being disempowered and children are being credited with great wisdom and responsibility when they are still too young to understand the massive consequences of their choices.

As Christians we may feel helpless, there appears to be a tsunami of support for these young people who are often encouraged to deceive and disown their own parents.  Schools are no longer the safe places they once were, where parents could trust the staff to involve them in their child’s choices.  Speaking out against what is happening to the child or in general conversation, also carries fear of backlash or even police intervention. But are we helpless?

Nehemiah’s response to the devestation in Jerusalem speaks powerfully into how we can respond.

He mourned the devastation. 
Are we mourning what we see, are we weeping over our children?  Are we anguished, or have we, like others, become immune to the destruction of young lives?  As Christians we should seek the heart of God and weep for what he weeps for.  We know how seriously God takes what’s happening - Matthew 18:6 says - “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.”  Let us mourn the devastation that we are experiencing.
 
We live in an era where many church leaders are confused, many are preaching a false message of unconditional love despite our sin, rather than the message of abounding and endless love for us when we repent of our sin.  Do you mourn the loss of integrity within the church, do you mourn denominational failings as they commit to blessing sin in order to maintain popularity within the world?  Paul warned us that there would come a time when people will surround themselves with what “their itching ears want to hear.” (2 Timothy 4:3).  This devastation is now fully upon us, let us mourn the fall of many parts of the church.

Confess sin.
Can we look to ourselves to see if there are any attitudes or thoughts that do not match up to God’s best?  Are we through our actions, or by omission, guilty of supporting this movement? What about our churches?  Should we repent of a lack of teaching or of affirming church leaders.  Can we repent for the sins of the national and international community of Christians, as Nehemiah did?
 
Pray, fast and seek God.
2 Chronicles 7:14 reminds us that “if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land.”  What great hope we have if we too, like Nehemiah, humble ourselves through prayer and fasting to seek God over this epidemic of sexual and gender confusion?  Despite the devastation around us this is the world, this promise of God can be trusted.

Remind God of his promises.
And finally let us use God’s word to kick start our prayers, to remind Him but also to remind ourselves of his faithfulness.  Just a few verses that we can use are listed below:

• Ezekiel 34:16 - I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.
• Jude 1:22-23 - And have mercy on those who doubt; save others by snatching them out of the fire; to others show mercy with fear, hating even the garment stained by the flesh.
• 1 Timothy 2:4 - Who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
• 2 Timothy 2:26 - And they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.
• Ezekiel 18:23 - Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord God, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live?

Declaring these truths back to God is powerful and helps bring a focus and structure to our prayers.

Nehemiah himself became part of the solution to the devastation of the city of Jerusalem, returning to oversee the rebuilding of the walls.  He didn’t rebuild the walls alone; he enlisted the help of every family still living there.  Who can you enlist to stand firm with you as you pray for the devastation of our generation?  What role is God asking you to play and what do you need to do?
 
I urge you to not stand back and let the devastation cause more ruin.  Speak to your Pastors to find out what the church is doing to teach and inform.  Join an intercessory prayer group, pledge to pray regularly for this generation and spend time fasting and seeking God.  Become informed and find strong Christian voices who can keep you updated.  Make a stand within your own life to refuse to consume media that pushes an agenda of sexual immorality.  Consider carefully what you allow to influence your thoughts, which films, tv, music, books, websites or social media influencers are you giving permission to speak the world’s view into your life over and above God’s ways?

Please consider joining our 24 hour of prayer on the 29th November as we pray for a “rebuilding of the wall”.  We will pray for an awakening amongst church members and leaders to the modern day devastation drawing our kids away from God and into the LGBTQ+ community.  This is a call to corporate repentance and a humbling of ourselves before God to seek his healing over our nations and a vast harvest of souls from the LGBTQ+ community.
To sign up to 24 hours of prayer follow this link Building the Wall