Nehemiah 2

 

[Nehemiah] TWO: The planning process_

Nehemiah 2

 

D L Moody was sailing on a boat and a fire broke out. One of his travelling companions said, “Don’t you think we should go and pray, Brother Moody?” and Moody replied, “You can go and pray, brother, but I am going to man the water buckets. There is a time to pray and a time to put the fire out.”

Quite often we create this either/or when it comes to prayer and action… and then end up neither praying or doing very much!
Discipleship is about finding the healthy balance of both/and… between dependency on God and action on our part.

 

In this second chapter, Nehemiah shows evidence of carful planning on both sides… praying and doing…

 

[Read Nehemiah 2]

 

How does Nehemiah show evidence of having a well-thought through plan in verses 1-9?

 

 

What are the differences between the praying Nehemiah does in this chapter and his prayer in chapter 1?

 

 

Nehemiah takes a huge risk here, why?

 

 

Would you have been able to take this kind of risk?
Why or why not?

 

 

 

In verses 11-16, what evidence is there that Nehemiah has thoroughly thought out and planned?

 

 

Often, people tend to fall into one of two categories: (1) thorough planning or (2) going with the flow.
Which do you usually follow and why?

 

 

Why do you think that Nehemiah seems so confident in verses 17-20?

 

 

After looking at the differences in an earlier question, what do you see as the connection between Nehemiah’s prayer in chapter 1 and his confidence in chapter 2?

 

 

From what we know already about Nehemiah’s character from these 2 chapters, what might be the reasons for him acting the way he does with Sanballat, Tobiah and Geshem in verses 18-20?

 

 

When living faithfully and trying to do God’s work in your own life, do you expect opposition?
Why or why not?

 

 

How can Nehemiah’s example of praying, planning and boldness help you to take risks and action?