“When I heard these things, I sat down and wept. For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of heaven…so the king asked me, ‘Why does your face look so sad when you are not ill? This can be nothing but sadness of heart.’” Nehemiah 2:2.
Nehemiah had just been visited by some of his former friends of Jerusalem. This was his first report of the state of Jerusalem which had been attacked and set to fire. These men brought news of how broken their beautiful city of Jerusalem was, and how the survivals of the exile returned to a burned-out city. When the men departed, Nehemiah was heart-broken and distraught. He wanted things to be like they used to be before their city was besieged by the enemy. He wanted the days of yesteryear when there was joy and singing in the city. He wanted back the times where things seemed less chaotic…joyous laughter…more hope. Nehemiah did the same thing we must do when our beautiful past has been turned on its head. He wept…he mourned…he fasted…he prayed. His face reflected the sadness of heart that accompanied him.
I know that many of you today are experiencing the aftermath of your life being turned on its head. You never saw it coming…you didn’t plan for it…but parts of your lives have been attacked and now your heart is burned out. You try to put on a happy face but its more work than its worth some days. When we feel like our cities no longer boast beauty and joy, we must take our broken hearts and offer them to Jesus. While we look across the landscape of our lives and see brokenness, He sees a redesigned future. As we see disrepair He sees new building blocks for a new life. As we feel disillusioned He feels determined to carry us through our seasons.
We can never count future joy out, when we count the power of Jesus in.
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