Nehemiah 1:11
O Lord, please hear my prayer!
Heed the prayers of those of us who delight to honor you. Please help
me now as I go in and ask the king for a great favor—put it into his
heart to be kind to me.” (I was the king’s cupbearer.)
The
Living Bible copyright © 1971 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by
permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois
60188. All rights reserved.
I’ve had to laugh lately at
our little nephew, Nathan. Since September, he has stayed with us a
couple of days each week while his parents work…and to put it mildly,
the kid thinks he “owns the joint!” So when Timothy and Zola joined him
this week for the day, Nathan did not take too kindly to sharing his
space – or us – with his older siblings. This kid knows no fear about
asking for things…and he is so darned cute that it’s hard to fuss at him
when he hollers from my office, “I need ‘shocklit’ milk!” and expects
it to magically appear in a sippy cup for him as he sits and watches
YouTube videos!
Suddenly, the chair in which Nathan sits became
“my chair” if his sibs looked at it crossways. As we read books while
sitting on the couch – Nathan on one side and Zola on the other – he was
none too happy when Zola wrapped her arms across my body. How dare she
claim even my mid-section as “hers!” And when Zola’s hand brushed
Nathan’s arm, he went into orbit! By the end of the day, there had been
a few tantrums, as one frustrated 3-year-old boy tried to claim his
“territory” and demand special favors that he had done nothing to merit.
I
love this particular passage from Nehemiah…especially how the king’s
cupbearer is so humble and faithful. He admits that he and his people
have disobeyed God. He acknowledges that by all rights, God should
scatter them to the four winds for their unfaithfulness, just as He
promised. But Nehemiah begs God to have mercy on them and reminds Him
that He also promised to restore those who repented and obeyed. So with
a humble heart – and as a lowly cupbearer to the King – Nehemiah asks
God to bless Him as he asks a favor of his earthly master.
I
wonder…how often do we humble ourselves before God? When was the last
time we asked God for something…and began our request by apologizing for
– and acknowledging – our sins? It’s pretty much the job of
3-year-olds to be jealous and self-centered…to expect others to cater to
their every whim. But are we like these toddlers in our relationship
with our Heavenly Father? Do we expect God to spoil us rotten and do
whatever we please, even when we misbehave and sin?
Isn’t it time
we began to recognize the power and sovereignty of God…as well as His
amazing grace and mercy? He doesn’t have to love us. He certainly
doesn’t have to hear our prayers – much less answer them. And yet, when
we call on His name, God is there…every time…without fail.
Some
days, our words, thoughts and actions are such that we are not even so
much as a lowly cupbearer in God’s sight. And still He loves us. When
you think about this, does it change how you approach God with your
daily list of worries, burdens and requests? Don’t you think it
should?
Isn’t it time to grow up…and lay down our immature
attitudes about our relationship with God? Are you ready to become like a
humble cupbearer to the King of Kings? Will this be the day that you
begin?
©2015 Debbie Robus
No comments:
Post a Comment