Nehemiah 2:4-5 – I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king

Praise the Lord           The king said to me, “What is it you want?” Then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king, “If it pleases the king and if your servant has found favor in his sight, let him send me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it.”             Nehemiah, who is a cupbearer to the king, has found out that Jerusalem has been destroyed. But instead of questioning why God would let this happen, Nehemiah begins to repent for the sins of his people. This humble posture leads to the opportunity to ask the king to help rebuild Jerusalem. When things seem to go terribly wrong do we simply criticizing God and those around us, or are we looking to heaven for the solutions? Instead of judging, Nehemiah was asking for mercy, and that posture opened the door for God to provide for the rebuilding of Jerusalem. How about us? How do we respond to challenging situations?                 Jeba