Thursday 27 Aug 2020

August 27: Nehemiah 1:5-11
 
Key Verse: Nehemiah 1:7
We have acted very wickedly towards you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.
 
Devotion:
How do you feel when you have to admit you have done something wrong, or you are simply wrong? It's not a nice feeling and sometimes we are filled with fear in case we are punished because of what we have done wrong. Many of those times we have admitted to being wrong, we have been forgiven by the other person and we look back and wonder why we were so afraid to start with...
 
This is the sticking point for many people who do not come back to God and who do not want to admit they have done anything wrong against God – they are too scared to say anything just in case God condemns them in some way... Well, the only one condemning us is ourselves! God has promised us He will forgive us and set us free from our worries!
 
God promised the Israelites they would have a place they could always call their own and He delivered on that promise. But here we have Nehemiah who is asking on behalf of all the people because too many are too scared to admit the problems! But Nehemiah remembered the promise and called on God to live up to His promise.
 
We can do the same. We can call on God to deliver our forgiveness because that is what He promised! We don’t have to be afraid because God has already promised! We just must take the first step and ask for the forgiveness – from then on it is all good! No matter what we have done, the promise still stands!
 
Points to Ponder:
Are you scared to take the first step?
 
Will you call on God to uphold His promise?