7 & 8 - 9 & 10

I missed last week so this will catch up for two weeks. Last week we studied chapter 7 & 8. Actually I divided the students up into small groups...gave them a section, and let them teach it. This was just another reminder of me about how capable this teens are. They brought out some great points and some great applications. We tend to baby them and maintain pretty low expectations and I was reminded that students will almost always live up to the expectations that are placed upon them...no matter how high or low they are.
In chapter 7 we see the wall completed and we see Nehemiah remembering where the Israelites had come from . In chapter 8 we see an absolutely amazing account of the power of God's Word. I would really encourage you to go read this chapter. We see how the Word of God impacted the people and how it brought them face to face with their sin. We could all use some of that...but parents...I think there might be a lesson there especially for us. We get so angry at our kids and we harp on them constantly about the things we see in their lives that bother us. Things that we don't like. I can't help but wonder...should we be doing less talking, and more scripture reading with our kids in order to let His Word open their hearts and convict them. I think that might sometimes work better than our lectures and scoldings.
Chapter 9 & 10, I thought, said a lot about how important the church is. In chapter 9 we see that the Israelites are truly broken over their sin. So what do they do...they come together as a people (no outsiders) and they confess, worship, and pray together. I could not help but to think of the church today as I read this. Maybe we need to take more time to come together as the body, and really take a hard look at ourselves. Not to complain about, judge and point fingers at the world around us...but to really focus on ourselves. What would happen if we were more concerned about the sins in our own lives and not so worried about the sinful people in our communities? What if we were more upset over the sins that we have committed today, than we are with our politicians in Washington? What if we were coming together for the specific purpose of confessing to each other and being accountable to each other...rather than just expecting the world to come and conform to us?
Chapter 10 describes a covenant that the people of Israel then wrote. It seems to very heavily focus on the temple and the things that were supposed to be regularly happening at the temple...but for years now had been neglected. Again, I could not help but reflect this idea back to the church today. The people of Israel had rebuilt their wall. They now felt safe and protected as a nation again. In their mind and in their hearts, life inside the walls could now be purified and return to what God had intended...a life which revolved around activities at the Temple, God's dwelling place. Shouldn't our churches be like that today? Shouldn't we view our churches through this same light? The church should be playing a vitally important role not just in our lives but in the lives our communities. I think we would do well to remember that!