man of prayer

This is from Francis Chan,  Prayer as a Way of Walking in Love: A Personal Journey. Very cool, as I am reminded the importance of prayer. It is so easy for me just to go ahead and do all these things for God, but am I really getting to know God more. Am I abiding in Him? Am I loving God more?

Going back to Nehemiah, we can see many elements of prayer that we can learn from: confession, sincerity, humility, persistence, recognizing God's mightiness, claiming promise that believers are entitled to. It seems that Nehemiah knows much about prayer, and that's possible when a man walk with God in prayer.

It is interesting to note that from chapter 1 (month of Kislev) to chapter 2 (month of Nisan), they are four months apart. That is like a school or coop term. What was Nehemiah doing during this time? The bible doesn't say, but one can infer from chapter 1 that Nehemiah could have spent more time praying and fasting since there were not any clear directions from God. Perhaps he also spent time planning and preparing his next course of action.

Also, in chapter 2 verse 4, before Nehemiah answers to the king, he prays to God for help! It shows that Nehemiah really draws strength from prayer, and that He relies on God.