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“The Prayers of Nehemiah”
A. Nehemiah
As We begin to look closely at the individual prayers of some men and one woman, let’s start with Nehemiah. The key to learning from him is to see how prayer flows from his life. Nehemiah’s prayers are just a reflection of his continual devotion to God. In fact, the book of Nehemiah is more like a diary detailing his life and thoughts, and it is the largest work of its kind in the Bible.
So, what characterized the life that produced such a magnificent prayer as that recorded in Nehemiah 1:4-11? The following are just a few of the many distinguishing characteristics that marked God’s servant, Nehemiah:
1. He was grieved when God’s name was not honored (2:2).
2. He continually demonstrated complete dependence upon God (2:4).
3. He always gave glory to God (2:8-9).
4. He always shared with others how God has been at work in his life (2:18).
5. Most of all, the key to his life was that he feared God (5:15).
Note how this life translates into an incredible prayer. Look at 1:4-11 and then check the following references to see how he quotes from Moses, David, Solomon, and Daniel. Try to find a quote from Nehemiah’s prayer in these five passages:
A. Exodus 20:6
B. Deuteronomy 7:21
C. I Kings 8:23
D. Psalms 47:2
E. Daniel 9:14-16