The Answer
THE ANSWER
Read Nehemiah 4:6-13.
Erin and her brother, Greg, had been praying that some of their friends would become Christians. Greg was overjoyed one Sunday when Chuck joined him at church. On the way home, Greg told his family that Chuck had accepted Jesus during Sunday school.
“That’s great,” Dad said with a smile.
“Wonderful!” added Mom. “Your prayers have been answered.”
Erin spoke up. “I pray for Lynn. But God doesn’t answer my prayers.”
“Don’t be discouraged,” advised Dad. “Sometimes it takes a long time before a person is ready to accept Christ.”
“Yeah,” added Greg, “I invited Chuck to Sunday school a whole year ago.”
“That’s right,” agreed Mom. She turned to Erin. “How often have you invited Lynn to go to church with you?”
“I haven’t exactly invited her,” stammered Erin. “But I let her know I go.”
“Have you ever told her about Jesus?” asked Greg.
“Well, not exactly,” admitted Erin. “I pray for her, though—a lot!”
“Hmmm,” murmured Dad. “Remember the Bible story of Nehemiah and the people of Israel building a wall around Jerusalem? When they heard their enemies were coming, they prayed, and they prepared to fight. It’s good that you pray for Lynn, but sometimes the Lord wants to use you to answer your own prayers.”
HOW ABOUT YOU?
Are you praying about something special—for someone’s salvation, for money you need, or perhaps for help with your lessons? Prayer is very important, but don’t just pray if there’s something you could also do to help. Maybe the Lord wants you to talk to somebody, to rake leaves, to be a friend, to study hard. Pray, and then with the Lord’s help, do all you can to accomplish the task.
TO MEMORIZE:
We prayed to our God and guarded the city day and night to protect ourselves.
Nehemiah 4:9
PRAY AND WORK.
From the book
