When my brothers from Judah came I asked them about the Jews who had escaped from being captives in Babylonia. I also asked them about the city of Jerusalem. They told me, "Those captives who have come back are having all kinds of troubles. They are terribly disgraced, Jerusalem's walls are broken down, and its gates have been burned." When I heard this, I sat down and cried. Then for several days, I mourned; I went without eating to show my sorrow, and I prayed.
Nehemiah is a contemporary with Ezra. The Persian government is allowing the return of the Babylonian exiles, but now we learn of new trouble concerning the security in Jerusalem. Nehemiah's proper response is crying for his country. He has a broken heart concerning the sins of the nation and he fasts to seek divine intervention into his & Judah's problem. Depriving himself of physical substance is his means of gaining spiritual energy.
Daily Prayer: Father, all too often I become used to your faithfulness without sufficient sacrifice on my own part. Forgive me Father. Let me learn from the prayer of Nehemiah to know and understand that you are the one to heal a broken heart. In your name I pray Amen.
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