Over the past several posts here, we've been reading through/reflecting on/praying through the book of Nehemiah. Please see my posts here, here, here, here, here, here, here and here.

On my other blog, I've done some posts on how God places the members into the Body of Christ as He wills, so today's prayer follows along on that same theme (e.g. - please see here, here and here).

Nehemiah was God's ordained leader sent by God to seek the welfare of God's people. He was grieved to hear of and then see Israel and the city of Jerusalem a reproach and in distress. God had put it into Nehemiah's heart to go to Jerusalem to lead the people in rebuilding.

Whenever there are ruins in the Church, God calls some to lead His people in rebuilding. Sometimes God's Church has gotten so low, so terribly low, that we barely resemble the New Testament Church, but thanks be to God because God's love for us in Jesus Christ is persevering, His good hand continues to be on us, and He raises up such men and women to lead His people in His way and His time, and then He puts it into the heart of His people to become engaged in the work of rebuilding. Very often that work of intercession for revival has begun with a couple people in very unlikely places (please see my posts here and here). We know the Lord Jesus told us that where two are three are gathered in His Name, He is in the midst. We also know that God's arm is not shortened that it cannot save. God is not limited by numbers (e.g. - consider the mustard seed, the leaven, the story of Gideon – please see here).

I will confess there have been times I've become discouraged because sometimes it seems there are only two or three praying (even less), yet God keeps reminding me there are others who are unseen (like He reminded Elijah). He also reminds me it's not about numbers, and that very often numbers serve to obscure His glory. First and foremost God wants hearts surrendered to Him and devoted to Him and His glory. God is seeking our unwavering obedience and our continuing prayers no matter what we might see. May we persevere in faith in approaching His throne of grace knowing no matter whether we see God's hand move mightily in His Church in our lifetimes or not, He hears our prayers and is pleased with us. Let us not seek results but continue to seek His face in spite of what we might see. May we walk by faith and not by sight. May we be found at our time of death on our knees as David Livingstone was, whose whole body was worn out beyond imagination but His heart and mind and soul remained wholly devoted to the service of His Savior.

God is seeking souls who will obey His call to them and persevere in that calling by faith. He is seeking souls who see their own poverty and neediness as well as that of the Church, souls which will continue to come to the throne of grace asking for His Church to be restored and revived. God will never fail to hear our prayers when we are seeking Him and His Kingdom and seeking that His Church be revived by His power to His glory alone.

I have been continuing to pray God would set watchmen on the wall:

We look at how Nehemiah was strategic in placing people in chapter 4:

In the same way God places people in the Body of Christ. He is calling some of His people to be intercessors, to be watchmen on the wall, those who will give Him no rest until He establishes His Church and makes us a praise in the earth.

Lord Jesus,

Nehemiah heard Your voice calling him to go to Jerusalem. We praise you for his example of obedience, dedication to and love for You and Your will and Your people. Yet we cannot forget that the wall was not built by Nehemiah alone. The people of Israel responded to Your voice to the work of building and defending.

We are so tempted to hand over the work of Your Church to a few leaders like Nehemiah, but let us never forget that You have called and equipped each one of us to walk in particular works to Your glory. We are all ministers. We pray we might have ears to hear where You are stationing us on the wall and that we might respond in willing obedience as Your Holy Spirit works in us.

You are the head of the Church, the head of the Body. You died so we might live to you. You have gifted each one of us differently. Your Father has ordained works for each one of us to walk in. Though all are called to prayer, there are some of us whom You have ordained to the work of intercession. Others have been called to other works in Your Kingdom. There are many members with many gifts and many callings, but one purpose: to seek the welfare of Your Church and to bring You glory. We are many members but we are called to work together as one man with one mind to Your glory. I am praying You would open ears to hear Your call. We can get distracted in doing many good works, but they may not be the works You have ordained for us. Give each one of us ears to hear Your voice, so we might know where You are stationing each of us. Give each one of us hearts to obey Your voice.

May we rejoice in the works You are calling each of us to do and treasure the high privilege it is to be involved in Your work here on the earth. May we not neglect using our gifts as You are calling us. May we seek to glorify You and steward all You have given us to build up the Church once again.

I pray Your mighty resurrection power would keep each of us persevering by faith with joy in the places You have stationed each one of us in the work of building and defending Your Church. Like Israel, we too will meet opposition. Keep us strong, steadfast, immovable abounding in Your work. We can be certain that our labor in You is not in vain.

Thank You for saving us and calling us to Yourself and making us a people when we were not Your people. Thank You for showing us mercy when we knew no mercy. Your love, grace and mercy never fail to astound us. In light of Your manifold mercies shown us in Jesus Christ, through His Spirit who dwells in us, may willingly and joyfully offer ourselves to You as living sacrifices for that is our reasonable service, our acceptable worship. We were made to serve You, to worship You. May You keep us in Your yoke, in harness for You wherever You station us on the wall, Lord Jesus, just as You finished all the work Your Father gave You to do.

Amen.

Earlier this week in my post "Your good hand continues to be on us in spite of opposition," I touched on how the work of rebuilding and repairing the walls and gates of Jerusalem was opposed. This opposition began in heaven when some of the angels rebelled against God's authority and they were cast out. We then saw in the garden how there would be enmity between the serpent and Eve's seed. Throughout the Bible we see Satan's continued attempts to destroy the people of God and thwart the work of God. But God is having none of it! God's work will not be thwarted. He is God and there is none like Him. He who has spoken will bring it to pass. Whatever our God has purposed, He will do. His plans for His Church will be fulfilled. (e.g.- see Isaiah 46).

Jesus told us that the devil comes to steal, kill and destroy. The devil is our adversary and accuser. He is a liar, a deceiver and a murderer. As Luther wrote, He is a real foe who seeks to do us woe. Let us never forget when we are doing the work of God, Satan is busying himself trying to tear it down any way he can.

Today's prayer is based on Nehemiah 4:1-5 and focuses on the temptations Satan continues to send to God's people as they are engaged in God's work...

Nehemiah 4:1  Now when Sanballat heard that we were building the wall, he was angry and greatly enraged, and he jeered at the Jews. 2  And he said in the presence of his brothers and of the army of Samaria, “What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?” 3  Tobiah the Ammonite was beside him, and he said, “Yes, what they are building—if a fox goes up on it he will break down their stone wall!” 4  Hear, O our God, for we are despised. Turn back their taunt on their own heads and give them up to be plundered in a land where they are captives. 5  Do not cover their guilt, and let not their sin be blotted out from your sight, for they have provoked you to anger in the presence of the builders.

Omnipotent God,

You set Your love on us before we loved You. You sent Jesus Christ to die for us while we were sinners. You foreknew and predestined us before we knew You. You called to us and gave us ears to hear. Our eyes were blinded to Your glory but You opened them to the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. We came to You only because You drew us. You have given us eternal life, the life of God in our very souls!

These things were impossible for us, but possible with You.

You, O Lord, are powerful. There is none like You. Though Satan is a defeated foe, he continues to prowl. He is powerful. More powerful than any of us, but not more powerful than You. Though he is the prince of the power of the air, though he is the ruler of this world, we know that You alone are the sovereign Ruler of all. Though it does not look like it some days, Satan has already been wholly defeated at Calvary's cross. Amen. Christ is the Victor. We confess we sometimes forget that. All things, including the devil's workings here in this world, are under Your authority. He can only do what you allow him.

In Nehemiah we see how the temptation came at the builders of the wall to focus on themselves rather than focus on You.

"What are these feeble Jews doing? Will they restore it for themselves? Will they sacrifice? Will they finish up in a day? Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?”

We face similar temptations. We hear taunts such as these (from outside ourselves and from within our own minds). As we begin to entertain such questions, we begin to doubt and to fear. We begin to doubt and question Your goodness, Your sovereignty, Your sufficiency, Your power and Your strength. We begin to take our eyes off You and we look at the work You have called us to. We begin to take our eyes off You and begin to look at ourselves. That is all the plan of the devil for as soon as we focus on the work and ourselves, we are no longer looking squarely at You. As a result we soon lose our vision and our hope and our source of strength, for we are no longer abiding in You as we ought. You alone are our strength. We, Your people, are the branches. Lord Jesus Christ, You are the Vine. All we have comes from You, O Lord and Giver of Life. Apart from You we can do nothing. We can never expect to do You work apart from Your Holy Spirit's power, Your resurrection life at work in us, working in us to will and to do of Your good pleasure.

Help us to keep our eyes fixed on You at all times, not on the work, not on ourselves, for in and of ourselves we are nothing. When we look at ourselves we will despair and lose hope.

Help us to keep abiding in You at all times, for in and of ourselves we have neither life nor power. When we rely on ourselves we will despair and lose hope.

Help us to keep our minds fixed on Your truth at all times, not on the lies of Satan, for He is a deceiver, a liar and the father of lies. When we listen to Satan's lies we will despair and lose hope.

Help us to keep drawing on Your life, for Satan is a thief and a murderer, there is neither life nor hope nor health in him. When we entertain his ideas, we will despair and lose hope.

You alone are mighty to save, to deliver, to equip and strengthen us.

In and of ourselves we have neither strength nor power.

You have promised You would never leave us or forsake us. You sent Your Spirit to bring us life when we were dead, and You have promised Your Holy Spirit would abide with us forever to sustain that life in us. We have the power of Jesus Christ, the one who conquered the grave, at work in us; Your incorruptible seed has come to birth us into Your family and to keep us. And we have the Lord Jesus Christ our great high priest interceding for us at the right hand of majesty in heaven.

When we hear the taunts from the enemy, instead of despairing in our weakness and poverty and inability, let us look to Your strength, riches and ability, Almighty God.

When we hear the taunts of the enemy, let us proclaim boldly and without reservation what You exhorted the Church at Laodicea to do (based on Rev. 3 ~ paraphrased/expanded):

As we remember Your mighty all-sufficient power given to us through the cross of Jesus Christ, we will respond to the taunts of the enemy with bold proclamations of Your sufficiency and strength and grace:

What are these feeble Jews doing?

We are weak, we are feeble, but You are strong! Oh, yes, we admit we are feeble, but You, O Lord, are our strong. But no, not only strong but You are our strength. We have no strength apart from the strength You provide us by Your indwelling Holy Spirit. Our weakness is the opportunity for Your grace and light to shine through us so You might be glorified in our earthen, cracked and feeble vessels.

Will they restore it for themselves? (will they fortify themselves? (KJV))

No, we will not restore it ourselves. We can do nothing at all apart from You, O Lord. We were unable to restore ourselves. And we are unable to restore ourselves must lest restore anything or anyone else! You alone, O Lord, will work in us so we might restore Your Church. Without You we can do nothing. We have no strength, no fortification apart from You, Almighty God.

Will they sacrifice?

We have no sacrifice to bring, except the all-sufficient sacrifice of Jesus Christ. We bow to You and You alone. No other sacrifice is needed. We stand in His righteousness alone. Because of Your mercies to us in Jesus Christ, however, we bring ourselves to You to do with us as You will. Our lives are not our own. We present ourselves as living sacrifices to do whatever work You call us to do for Your Kingdom and for Your glory. This is not a sacrifice but a joy and a delight to be able to bring ourselves to Your service, O Lord. Continue to work in us to will and to do of Your good pleasure.

Will they finish up in a day?

We do not know how long we will need to work but as Your power and grace work in us, we trust You will finish the work You have begun in and through us. By faith and patience we will inherit the promises. Let us labor hard, yet not us, but Your grace and Your Spirit who dwells in us. May we not grow weary in well doing. May we continue to plant ourselves in You and in Your Word, to study to show ourselves approved. May we put off the sin that easily besets us and run the race with perseverance and fix our eyes on Jesus. May we run to attain the prize of the high calling in Jesus Christ and lay hold to lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has laid hold of us. May we press on to know You and count all things loss for the all-surpassing value of knowing Jesus Christ. May we strive for the imperishable crown and discipline ourselves so we might not be disqualified. Strengthen our hands and our hearts and our minds, O God, for the work to which You have appointed us.

Will they revive the stones out of the heaps of rubbish, and burned ones at that?

No! Amen. We fully confess we have no power to revive anything. We have power only as Your Holy Spirit breathes into us and dwells in us. We will work to revive but only as You work in us. Lord Christ, we know it is Your good pleasure that the stones in Your Church as revived once again. We see the heaps, we see the burned stones. We grieve along with You, O Lord. We are living stones only by Your life come to indwell us, but too often we confess we have fallen into states of deadness and lethargy. You are the source of our life. You quickened and revived our dead and dry souls, and we are trusting You will revive us again for Your glory. Your Church needs reviving. We lie in ruins. We are a reproach and shame to Your blessed and holy Name, much like Jerusalem was after the exile. We are trusting that You who created the world out of nothing will revive the dry bones in Your Church once again. Work in us as You will to be Your instruments of that work of revival in Your Church.

Our Father, we pray with one mind and one heart that the plans of Your enemies would be turned back. We ask this humbly and only because we see Your Name disgraced and reproached. Yet we know in Your mysterious and inscrutable ways, You are sovereign over Satan, You are sovereign over all Your enemies and are using them to Your glory. We confess we do not understand this. You allow the tares to grow up with the wheat. You allow false teachers to prosper. But we do know that as we Your people, as Your holy bride is attacked, You are attacked. And we grieve when Your Name is blasphemed and despised. We pray You might help us to face Your enemies and answer them with truth from Your Word through Your Holy Spirit. Grant us wisdom and words in dealing with Your enemies. Open our mouths, give Your words, and then shut our mouths as You will. Strengthen us so we might stand strong against all the enemy's attacks.

We also pray Your kindness would bring even Your enemies, the opponents of Jesus Christ and His Gospel of grace through faith, to repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. We humbly confess that we were once Your enemies and Your kindness drew us to repentance. Our minds were enmity against You. We were not worthy and You made us worthy. You loved us first. We were blind but now we see. We were not a people but now we are Your people. We once knew no mercy but now we have know Your mercy through the cross. Help us to love our enemies as You loved us, and to pray for those who persecute us. We pray Your Holy Spirit might work in Your enemies, open their eyes, soften their hearts. May we continue to witness to all peoples of Your amazing and abounding sovereign grace available through the cross of Jesus Christ to all who believe. May Your irresistible grace bring many to faith in Jesus Christ, so they might receive Your manifold mercies and great grace in abundance as we have. We intercede for them today, O Lord God. As many as You have called to eternal life, draw now, O Lord, Great Shepherd of the sheep, and increase Your Kingdom, so we might rejoice with the angels in heaven and You. Amen.

A few days ago I wrote how God put it on my heart last year to pray for revival and to call others to pray as well.

I've been rereading some of the prayers posted here at tent of meeting, both the guest prayers posted here as well as many of the other prayers (comments) offered up here for revival. And with all those I know there have been countless other prayers offered up that have not been posted here.

I have to stand amazed at what God has been doing here. I thank God for each of you and for the prayers you have offered up for revival in the Church. Let us consider that when we pray we are speaking with the living God, the God of all flesh, the God who sits enthroned above the earth!

Though we may not be many, let us not despise the day of small things. Our God is mighty and He continues to work immeasurably above all we can ask or imagine to the praise of His glory for all eternity.

I have been so blessed by those whom God has brought together to this "tent of meeting" and by the many prayers you have offered up for revival. I know some of you, but there are some of you I don't really know well, and there are others I don't really know at all.  But I do know that God knows you all. He sees us and welcomes us all as we seek His face in prayer and for Jesus' sake, He hears our prayers as we pray according to His will.

As I thought about this I couldn't help but wonder: If I have been blessed so much by what is happening here, how much more is our Lord blessed when we all come to Him in prayer? The Lord Jesus Christ died for us so we might seek our Father's face in prayer, to enter into His glorious presence with boldness and confidence, so we might not to be anxious about anything, but that we might instead cast our cares on Him, including our cares about His Church. Many of us have great cares about the Church because God has opened our eyes to see the ruins in the Church, including those in our own lives. As children of God when we avail ourselves of the high privilege of prayer purchased for us at Calvary, is not our God blessed and glorified beyond what we can imagine? Christ died in order that dead, lifeless sinners like us might be made alive and holy and sanctified and able to enter into loving fellowship with God the Father without fear. How He must rejoice that we are coming to commune with Him in the most holy place and intercede for His Church! (Please see my post about treasuring the blood-bought privilege of prayer.)

In the past few days it's struck me how truly wonderful the work is God is doing among us. I've come to see in a greater way the privilege (and responsibility) we have in coming together in prayer. We have had brothers and sisters in Christ coming to this website from all around the world, from all across the Body of Christ, seeking God's face in prayer. The grace of God, the love of God and the Spirit of God have been compelling us, working in us do will and do to His good pleasure, so we might come together into the presence of God with one mind and one heart and seek Him. We come with one plea, the blood of Jesus. We all admit we are poor and needy, yet we come with with a holy boldness to ask Him to revive us again for we know His desire for His people is that we be alive and bright and shining forth His glory and praise throughout the earth. We are in desperate need of revival through His sovereign Spirit.

As I've been reading in Nehemiah, I think I may have felt like Nehemiah as he looked out and saw the wall being rebuilt and the gates being repaired, as he saw everyone working and doing repairs on his specific area on the wall. It is an amazing thing to stand back and see any group of people being like-minded about anything. And how much more glorious it is when the people of God come together, in this case to seek God's face in unified prayer, with one mind. By the grace of God at work in us, we are attempting to put aside our own interests to seek that the glory of God be restored to the Church once again as we pray for the restoration, renewal and revival of His Church, starting with ourselves. How wonderful it is that the one God and Father of us all has been calling some members of His Body to be watchmen, to seek His face in prayer on behalf of His Church for the sake of His holy Name.

Like Paul, I have great joy and rejoicing (yes, my eyes are tear-filled now) to think of all of you coming together in His Name to seek His face on behalf of His Bride. Certainly it gives our Father joy to see His children unified for the sake of His Name, for the sake of His Gospel, for the purpose of unified prayer for His Church. My continuing prayer for us is that our Lord would keep us of the same mind, having the same love and remaining in full accord and of one mind. May our good Shepherd protect, guard and guide us as we continue to seek His face in prayer for revival.

Prior to these verses about our having the same mind and the same love, Paul wrote:

Let's make no mistake about it: Prayer is striving. Though we are not striving physically side by side like the Israelites who repaired the wall in Jerusalem, we are striving spiritually side by side. Paul wrote that we ought to be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit. As we come together to the throne of grace as one Body we are maintaining that God-imparted unity. Truly we are showing that

Though we are not physically repairing, prayer is work. Isn't it sometimes harder to lift a prayer than to lift a brick or hammer a nail? We are laboring against powers and principalities in the heavenly realms. The other day I wrote here about some of the opposition Nehemiah and Israel met in rebuilding the wall and how we should not be surprised when we meet with similar opposition.

We must remember that anytime we seek the welfare and well-being of the children of God (see Neh. 1:10), we know there will eventually be opposition and we will be tempted to be frightened. I am praying God would keep the vision clear and the passion fiery in the hearts of those of us He has called to this ministry of intercession. I am also praying God's Holy Spirit would continue to implant that calling even more deeply in our hearts, so it might bear abounding fruit of persevering and zealous prayer for revival. From time to time we all have our vision dim and our passion flicker, yet our God is gracious and merciful to us and never fails to call us back to Him so we might walk in all the works He has ordained for us.

One of the devil's favorite tactics is to bring about dissension and division within the Church of God. May we never divide over nonessentials to our faith, yet may we never compromise on the essentials. And may our God give us love in all things. (For more on that, please see my post here.)

I am praying our heavenly Father would continue to call and raise up more watchmen to join us on the walls. His eyes run to and fro across the earth. There are people from all around the world who have come to visit this website. I am praying God might use our prayers to spur those He is calling on to concerted prayer, either here or elsewhere. May He put a desire to pray in their hearts as He has ours, and may all of us continue to seek His face together in prayer side by side striving on the walls...being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind.

May Almighty God strengthen us and sustain us so we might labor in our particular places on the wall and pray without ceasing. The Lord Jesus Christ, our great high priest, intercedes for us without ceasing at the right hand of the Father. Our God neither sleeps nor slumbers. May Christ's eternal Spirit help us and work in us so we take no rest and give Him no rest. May He strengthen us mightily to persevere in prayer. Though we will work and labor hard, may we gain our needed strength from remaining in Christ's easy yoke and then work out what He is working in us. Our God will never fail to provide all we need. May we all be strengthened by the grace that is in Christ Jesus.

Lord God, complete in each of us the work You have begun. We long to see ourselves and Your Church revived. Please establish Your Church once again and make us a praise in the earth to Your glory alone.