Prayer and Action

I recently have been reading through the book of Nehemiah. Chapter 4:8-9 caught my attention. The Israelites were trying to rebuild the city walls of Jerusalem and they were facing the threat of attacks from opposing nations. Nehemiah writes in his journal, "They all made plans to come and fight against Jerusalem and throw us into confusion. But we prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves." I love how Nehemiah says, "we prayed and we took action." In essence Nehemiah trusts God to help protect the city and at the same time he calls the people to action. I think that sometimes Christians have a tendency to think work is the antithesis to prayer. I believe the opposite is true. We must trust God through prayer and at the same time be diligent to actively extend his kingdom. I believe God honors our faith in Him often evidenced by how diligently we work. Contrary to some lines of thought, our work can be huge evidence of our faith in God. When we work diligently we say, "God I trust you to build what will last. I am going to be faithful and trust you for the increase." More to come on Nehemiah tomorrow.