This is Leading the Way with Pastor and the author of more than 50 spiritually challenging, spiritually encouraging books, Dr. Michael Yousaf. Brokenness surrounds us. Broken people, broken families, broken cities, and of course, broken governments. And many are willing to share their displeasure with the brokenness, usually on social media, but only a few stand up and step up to be a part of the healing and the restoration.
Today, on leading the way, Dr. Youssef introduces you to Nehemiah. He heard about a deep brokenness in Jerusalem and felt a strong personal calling from God to step up, to be a part of bringing restoration. And through his life, we see an example for how you and I can rebuild the brokenness in our world. Up next on Leading the Way, the first episode in Dr.
Youssef's series, Rebuilding Our Broken Walls. And as your situation allows, open your Bible or your Bible app to Nehemiah chapter 1. Join Dr. Youssef on this episode of Leading the Way Audio. Today We are seeing many walls that are broken.
and lives that are broken. Walls of homes that are broken. Walls of our culture is already broken. Walls of our education system is broken. There are so many walls that are broken in churches.
There's only one who can help us rebuild those broken walls. And his name is Jesus. Look around you. Look around, you see broken lives everywhere, broken morals everywhere, the walls of morality has fallen down and the gates of fidelity and marriage are burnt down and the walls of sanctity of marriage is in ruins. And when walls crumble and the gates are burnt, And children became defenseless and vulnerable.
And if there is a time for us To learn how How to rebuild these walls. before it's too late. It is now. It is now. If there is a time for us to restructure those burnt gates, Around our children it is now.
And if there is a person who can give us a role model, an example of how to rebuild, it is Nehemiah. And that is why I'm commencing the series of messages. Rebuilding Our broken walls. From the book of Nehemiah. Remember this, Nehemiah was a Jew.
He was born and raised In perjure. under the Persian Emperor's rule. But when he heard about the broken walls and the burnt gates, He did something about it. I know we call him the prophet Nehemiah, but he really is not a prophet in the classical Old Testament sense. He really, in reality, was a businessman.
He was a professional. He was a man who, the most trusted man. In the Palace by the emperor, who at the time was the most powerful man in the world. He was totally trusted by him. He was so close to the seat of power he could touch it and he did.
But before I tell you of how Nehemiah went about this crisis, about rebuilding the wall. There are a couple of things that I want you to know about Nehemiah the person. Because when you understand where he was, And what he did, you will understand that he is probably in a far better position than any of us. in terms of worldly comfort. in terms of worldly leisure.
You see, he was geographically more than a thousand miles away, but. Culturally, and in every other way, economically, he was a million miles away from the trouble. For he himself was living in the lap of luxury. He was the most important man to the emperor of Persia. But then he heard about the broken walls and the burnt gates.
And he could have said like a lot of Christian people do. When they hear about what's going on in our culture, what's happening in our society. Oh, isn't that too bad It's not too bad. And they maybe forwarded the email to all of their friends. Tell them how bad it is.
You let them read it, hear the bad news. hoping, I guess, somebody may do something about it. That's not really my problem. I'm so far away. I'm all the way here in Persia, what can I do all this distance away?
I wish I could help those people, but I just can't help them. Oh, don't get me wrong. I would like to help, but I don't want to jeopardize my security here in the palace. Don't get me wrong, I do want to help these people, but I don't want to jeopardize. my privileges in this palace.
Why should I get involved with the problem? With us folks so far away. And on and on and on he could have gone, but he didn't, thank God. He identified with the suffering of God's people. although he has never been to Jerusalem himself.
He was born and raised in exile. His zeal for the Lord And for God's people moved him to do something. Nehemiah understood the cry of Isaiah when he said, Here I am. Send me. Not here I am, use me in some advisoring capacity.
Well, here I am sending my sister, she's more qualified. But what really Wounded Nehemiah's heart, not the wall per se, and not the gates per se, it's what they represented. And what these broken walls and burned gates represented Is that the name of the Lord has been disgraced, that the name of the Lord has been mocked, that the word of God has been ridiculed, and the people of God were indifferent. And so the first thing he did, he began to weep. And fast.
And pray. The sin of God's people broke his heart. The sin of the nation wounded him. Deeply. the condition of the vulnerability of the children.
being defenseless. touched him greatly. And this tragic condition drove Nehemiah first to his knees. Look at verse 4. When I heard these reports, I sat down and wept for days.
Then he did three things. Listen carefully. He persevered in praising the name of God. He persisted. In prayer.
An intercession. And thirdly, he prepared for God's plan. for his life. First, He persevered in praising the name of God. Look at verse 5.
O Lord God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands. Yeah. Nehemiah. Stood In awe. Not of the Persian Emperor, but of God, the God of heaven.
He stood in awe of His majesty. He came with deep reverence. and respect for the God of heaven. And you know, and I know that there are some people who think praise means just jumping up and down and kind of let off some hipped-up emotions. But the fact that Jesus taught us to call his father Abba does not make us to turn him into a bellhop.
waiting at our beck and call to do whatever we want. Scripture tells us so clearly that God resists the proud, that He resists those who take Him for granted. And take all of his blessings for granted, but he gives Grace to the humble. Nehemiah went in the presence of God as a man with a broken spirit. as a man who confessed his own sinfulness Before he interceded, For the sinfulness of his people.
A man who gave praise and glory to God alone. A man Who counted the incredible blessing of God's intervention in the past? He did not come to God questioning, God, why did you do this to your people? You called them the apple of your eyes. How come you allowed them to get in this miserable condition?
Because he knew jolly well why they got into this miserable condition. Because he knew that prophet after prophet after prophet came and pleaded with them, turn, turn, turn, and then when they didn't, God had enough. Send him to exile. The time is coming, and may not be too many years from now, when God says, I've had enough. I've had enough apostasy in the church.
I have enough of those in the pulpits turned into stage. I've had enough of congregation become audience. And spectators, I've had enough. Nehemiah praised the name of God in tough times, and praising God in tough times honors God. Lifting up the name of Jesus in puzzling times pleases the Lord.
Thanking him for his salvation and for his past blessings endears us to the heart of God. Again, I'm not talking about singing. Praise is far more than that. Because you can sing the words. But your heart is bitter.
You can sing the words. And your attitude is, God, why is this happening to me?
So the first step of rebuilding the broken wall. Was not rushing in there and working out a plan and strategy paper and white paper and get everybody on board and get a vote. Yeah. The first step of rebuilding the wall is to learn how to praise the name of God. And that's what Nehemiah did.
Secondly, Nehemiah persisted in prayer. He persevered in praise, he persisted in prayer. 1 Thessalonians 5:17. Pray without ceasing.
Now, this kind of prayer that Nehemiah exemplified, as we're going to see not just today, but throughout the series, it was around November, December of our calendar. And he prayed. and he persisted in prayer all the way till around March-April of the following year. Four months. of doing nothing but praying.
Why? Because he wanted to be sure that he's not just speaking to God, but he's hearing from God. He wanted to hear from God. Nehemiah knew that the battle was going to be won or lost on the knees of prayer. Nehemiah knew that he had to first win the battle in his own soul.
For any victory over our enemy and the enemy of our soul must be. through persistence in prayer. That's the key. Even If you don't see an immediate response or answer to your prayer, even if it takes a long time, even if you cannot see any evidence that God is even hearing you, He is hearing you. I can tell you truthfully, it breaks my heart to see people who totally misunderstand what prayer is all about.
It really breaks my heart. It breaks my heart to see people who see prayer. as only asking for something. And then whether they get it or they don't get it, they take off. But the truth is this, listen carefully.
The spiritual life. is a state of spiritual warfare. You signed up for it when you said yes to Jesus. The Bible tells us there is an enemy. Who is out to destroy us, out to discourage us, out to defeat us?
The spiritual life is a continuous state of spiritual warfare. No, Jesus defeated Satan on the cross, but the skirmishes are going on. There is a relentless enemy who's constantly warring against you and against your family and against everything you touch, whether you know it or not. And the sooner you know this, the better off you are.
So you don't get surprised. And are you ready for this? He has no ceasefire. Doesn't believe in it. That miserable character.
Above all, The one thing he wants to do is he wants to cut your supply line. He really does. Any of you know anything about warfare? You know. having an open supply line.
Can determine whether you win or lose, whether you have victory or you're defeated in the battle. And that is why persistence in prayer keeps that supplied line open. When the spiritual supply line is constantly open. You will have victory every time, even though you may have some setbacks. Listen, I talk to enough people to know that many of them think that God is just reluctant to answer their prayers.
They really do. And they think that their persistence in prayer is to try to kind of twist God's arm to stop him from being reluctant. Try to convince God why He should answer their prayer. But listen to me, God is not reluctant. God delights in pouring His power in us.
God rejoices over us with singing. And God choose to empower us through persistence in prayer. Listen to what Paul said to the Ephesians in 3.20.
Now, to him who's able to do what? Far more abundantly than all we think, according to the power at work where? Within us. When the supply line is continuously and persistently open and flowing, Then the moment you get into an ambush, You are not going to be easily discouraged or defeated. Why?
Because the supply line is continuously coming. And you immediately get reinforcement. What does that mean? When the supply line constantly open and persistent prayer. And that means you're not just asking.
But listening. You see, that's what it means to have that supply line open. You're speaking and you're listening. And when you're praying, by speaking and listening. You will be about his business.
And when you're about God's business, you will do His will. And when you are delighted to do his will, you get abundance of blessings. And it goes on and on and on and on. When Nehemiah not only persevered in praise, not only he persisted in prayer. But his heart was prepared.
for God's plan, for God's precept. His heart was prepared for whatever God has for him. That's the third point. When you pray that God would give you his plan, And then he would help you obey it. He will.
He will. I've seen it too many times to doubt it. Look at verse 11. Oh Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight. Delight in what?
We delight in revering your name. Another way of putting this, he is saying answer. The prayer of the of those who delight in obeying you. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man. He's talking about his boss.
The Emperor. who could have lobbed people's heads. without batting an eye. He knew. This is a cruel and hard man.
But when God takes heart of his heart, he can turn it around to do God's will. Listen. I know how prayer sometimes can be used as an excuse for doing nothing. Yeah. This type of prayer is reporting for duty.
It's not just I'll pray.
Now I'll pray. I'll pray. I'm going to confess to you. And those of you who read the books, you know this to be absolutely true in my life, and particularly the time when I was praying. About where God was going to guide me in terms of well after I already knew that He had on my heart a consistent preaching ministry, that He's going to use whatever He puts me as a way to reach the world.
And I did not know what that meant, but I knew God is saying that. And so I prayed and I fasted and I prayed, and God made it clear for me. And when I heard a God to be saying, plant a church in Atlanta, Georgia. I went back to pray again. I really did.
I was using prayer as an excuse for not doing what God has asked me to do. I just don't think I've heard Him right. I need to pray some more. I really need to pray some more. Until God sent me the most unlikely person, he said, Get on with it.
Don't keep using prayer as an excuse. Move into action with obedience. And when you pray for God to give you his plan, So that you may obey it. You must be ready. You must be ready to get off your blessed assurance.
And get on with it.
Now, I remember from that time on, one of my favorite verses that always tugs on my heart is in 2 Samuel 24, 24.
So easy to remember. 24, 24, 2 Samuel.
Well, David prayed and said, God forbid that I give you that which cost me nothing. Prayer is not giving God your wish list and just waiting for that to fall down from heaven. It's reporting for duty. Prayer is willingness to say, Here I am, send me. When Nehemiah heard about these broken walls and the burnt gates, He did not pray as a lot of people pray.
Oh God Do something for these people. Yeah. You know what I'm talking about? He said, use me to serve your will and purpose. Listen, Nehemiah's prayer was willingness to leave his comfort zone.
It was a call to action. It was stepping forward and saying to God, God, I'm ready. I know and you know. That sometimes our obedience and stepping out in faith appears to us to be risk-taking. From a human point of view.
He wanted me to do what? You want me to spend this, you want me to give of myself, you want me to give this, and you want me to do that. God. But but that's risk. Oh yeah.
It is not risk if it is backed up with the king of the universe who owns it all. How can it be a risk? We often pray, Oh Lord, send laborers into the field, send laborers into the harvest. You know what God loves to hear? God loves to hear, Oh Lord, send me into the field.
Oh Lord, send me into the harvest. Oh Lord, send me into my neighborhood. Oh Lord, send me into my workplace. Oh Lord, send me to my campus. Oh Lord, send me to my school.
Oh Lord, send me whatever you want to send me. And help me to do. Whatever you want me to do. I want your plan. Not mine.
And I thought as I conclude this message I thought of the people who Every one of them who came to the Lord and said, Use even me. And God used them mightily. I think of Hudson Taylor. I think of John Wesley. I am absolutely convinced, as I am here to day, That God honors the quiet behind the scenes obedience.
I am absolutely convinced. That some obscure Sunday school teacher whose name most of you would say never heard of. A man. whom God used mightily, By his simple obedience. To lead dear Muri to Christ.
God was delighted when Ezra Kimbles, after a moment of hesitation, standing in front of the shoe store, that he did pick courage and went into the shoe store and he led that shoe salesman to Christ. And God is just as delighted in Israel Kimball. Obedience As with D.L. Moody's rocking two continents for Christ. It's obedience that he's looking for.
quiet obedience and behind the scenes obedience.
Now, I am absolutely convinced that those behind the scene obedient servants. They are going to be the ones who are the superstars in heaven. I'm convinced that those are in the front and those who have the big names, they're going to be in the very back, back, back of heaven. These faithful people who persevered in praise, persisted in prayer, prepared for God's plan and quiet obedience. Are the ones that are going to hear from the lips of Jesus loud and clear, well done, good and faithful servant.
And I hope you made a few notes from Dr. Youssef's message. We thank you for joining listeners across six continents for leading the way. Would you like to speak to a pastor or a counselor about a relationship with Jesus or ways to grow deeper?
Well, submit a contact form at ltw dot org slash Jesus. And while you're there, at ltw dot org I mean, won't you consider getting a copy of doctor Youssef's perspective changing book, SAVING CHRISTIANITY doctor Youssef is offering to send you a copy as his thank you when you give a gift of any amount to Leading the Way this month. In Saving Christianity, Dr. Youssef offers a passionate declaration that people need saving.
Society needs saving. Our world needs saving. But Christianity. Does not need saving. It just needs to be better understood and proclaimed more clearly to the world.
And you can be a part of that. Get your copy of Saving Christianity from Leading the Way Today. Call us. Speak to a ministry representative at the Ministry Call Center at 866-626-4356. And online, we're at ltw.org.
That's ltw.org. As we bring today's episode of Leading the Way to a Close. Allow me to invite you also to watch Leading the Way Television. Each week, dig into the truth of God's word and be challenged to love and serve the Savior. Leading the way television is available in most areas on TBN, Daystar, NRB, TCT, Fox Business, and more.
Visit ltw.org for details. That's ltw.org. This program is brought to you by Leading the Way with Dr. Michael Yousap. Connect further with audio and video content at ltw.org.
or through your favorite social media platform. including YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and more.
