Learning From Nehemiahنموونە

Feeling All the Feels

Déjà vu.

Have you ever experienced that?

That uncomfortable feeling that you have seen something before, had this exchange with this person before, previously been to this place before that you’re visiting for the first time?

That feeling can come frequently when reading the Bible.

First, there are the books of Kings and Chronicles, which tell the history of the nation of Israel from different perspectives. The Gospels do something similar with Jesus’ life. Some individual stories even call for a bit of a double-take—see the stories of Abraham, Isaac, their wives, and King Abimelek, for example (see Genesis 20 and 26, respectively).

Today’s passage is a bit of a glitch in the matrix, too.

As we read of Nehemiah and his grief over the fallen walls of Jerusalem, we’re subtly invited to remember the weeping that took place in the book of Ezra (see Ezra 3:12 and 9:3-5).

These two books are intimately tied together, not simply by the timing of their events and the overlapping work of their main characters, but by thematic elements as well, such as God’s faithfulness, human faithfulness, our response to sin and judgment, and the value of focus and cooperation.

We’re introduced to Nehemiah sitting and weeping for days over the state of the walls of Jerusalem. In ancient times, walls were as much a status symbol as they were practical. A city without walls was vulnerable. It suggested there was nothing there worth protecting. Walls were safety, security, and standing.

Nehemiah’s response is understandable in this context.

This week, we will look at the Book of Nehemiah and see how we can be men who engage with God and others through Nehemiah’s story.

The first question we are challenged with is one of passion and commitment.

As the book begins, we are confronted with what may feel like an awkward picture: a man sitting and weeping for days at a stretch. Nehemiah is weeping because he feels (and feels deeply) over the fate of Jerusalem.

His passionate emotional response leads the way to action carried out in the rest of the book.

What an example!

Let’s also be men who feel deeply, who embrace the fullness of the ways God has created us—emotions (all of them) and all.

But, like Nehemiah, let’s let those emotions turn us into men of action who work to serve God and His Kingdom.

Prayer: God, thank You for making us complete men, emotions and all. Help me to embrace and express the emotions You have given me, and let me turn those emotions into a positive direction and action. Amen.

Reflection: What are you passionate about? Do you easily express your God-given emotions? What is something practical you might do to grow in this area?