At sinabi ko sa kanila kung paano ako pinagpala ng Diyos at kung ano ang sinabi sa akin ng hari.

Nehemias 2:18a

Nag-“Marites” si Nehemiah sa kanyang mga kababayan.

First, the bad news: Jerusalem lies in ruins!

Then the good news: The king gave me favor because the gracious hand of God was upon me,  and it will also be upon all of us.

Then the call to action: Let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem and end this disgrace!

With the extent of the damage and opposition, it looked like an impossible mission. So he had to tell them how God had given him favor. In Nehemiah 2:18 he said, “Then I told them about how the gracious hand of God had been on me, and about my conversation with the king.”

Sa naunang devotion natin kahapon, Nehemiah reflected on God’s favor upon him. Today, we learn that his thoughts led to his publicly declaring to the leaders, priests, nobles, officials, and others: “The gracious hand of God had been on me.”

Sometimes, we are timid to open our mouths to talk about how good God had been to us. Madaling magkuwento tungkol sa ibang tao, like ano ang latest tungkol sa isang popular na artista. Pero bakit parang nahihiya tayo na magkuwento tungkol sa kabutihan sa atin ng Diyos?  

God was glorified when Nehemiah declared His goodness. But on top of that, the people were strongly encouraged by his declaration of God’s favor that they immediately responded to Nehemiah’s challenge: “‘Yes, let’s rebuild the wall.’ So they began the good work” (Nehemiah 2:18b, NLT).

Is there any broken wall you need to rebuild? Ask for the gracious hand of God upon you. And don‘t forget to tell others about it when He grants you His favor. Iyan ang worth it na ikuwento mo.