Day 131, or May the 11th.
Start with yourself, then help others.
Our thoughts today are rooted in Nehemiah chapter 12 verse 30.
When the priests and Levites had purified themselves ceremonially, they purified the
people, the gates, and the wall.
Another big picture surrounding this verse.
The final pieces of the resettlement of the Jews were put into place, and then joyfully
recorded in the final chapters of the book of Nehemiah.
The wall is dedicated, and the people resolve to become God's chosen people, in practice
as well as in belief.
Wholesome marriages are once again introduced as the norm, and the day of rest, or Sabbath,
is honored throughout the land.
The temple is rebuilt.
The wall forms a firm fortification around the city of Jerusalem, and God's people are
determined to succeed where their ancestors failed.
Now our action step for today.
Before going to minister to others, be sure that you are on the right track yourself.
Don't wait until you're perfect, because you never will be, otherwise you will achieve
nothing, but setting out blind to what God wants you to do in your own life will truly
be a case of the blind leading the blind.
In the days of Nehemiah, the first step taken by the leaders was to make sure that they
themselves were purified.
They had ceremonies to help achieve this, but these only worked when the leaders' hearts
were right with God.
The priests and Levites next worked on the people, and then sanctified the gates and
the walls.
The order is so important.
Start with yourself before trying to help others.
As Jesus put it in Matthew chapter 7 verse 5, first get rid of the log in your own eye,
then you will see well enough to deal with the speck in your friend's eye.
We see faults in others so much clearer than we see them in ourselves, so spend some time
with God each day making sure you have no log in your eye before setting off to serve
Him in your daily life.
Any logs need removing today?
You don't need to be a lumberjack, you just need to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit.