Naming What’s Broken Out Loud
Nehemiah 2:3; Psalm 142:1-2
If you’ve ever experienced loss or walked alongside someone who has, you may be familiar with the five stages of grief. The five stages begin with denial and end with acceptance. Acceptance isn’t the end of grief, though. Although it may take a while to get there, acceptance just means you’re able to acknowledge the reality of the loss and begin to live in that new reality. Then more hard work begins.
Nehemiah experienced a great loss, and it affected him deeply. And rightly so! His response is appropriate and relatable. And God, in His sovereignty, had placed Nehemiah near enough to a king for his grief to be noticed. The king invites Nehemiah to give a voice to his grief, to name the burden he had been carrying since hearing the news about Jerusalem.
This probably wasn’t new information to the king, but it seems as though he doesn’t have the same reaction that Nehemiah had. They are different people with different backgrounds. Of course they wouldn’t have the same reaction to this news. Perhaps it didn’t matter to King Artaxerxes in the same deeply personal way, but it certainly mattered to Nehemiah.
The king may not have been moved by the devastation of Jerusalem, but he was moved by Nehemiah’s reaction to it. Not only that, but he also had the resources to do something about it. Nehemiah took a chance expressing his vulnerability to the king. But remember—the king invited it.
God extends the same invitation to us. He invites us to pour out our hearts before Him. We see this over and over again in the Psalms. David cries out from a cave in Psalm 142: “With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him.”
Was David telling God anything He didn’t know? Of course not. God knew exactly where David was and how he felt about it. Still, it was important for David to express his feelings to God. It’s important for us, too.
There are some experiences that we share and others that are unique to us. But even shared experiences affect us all differently. We have to acknowledge our feelings and bring them into the light before God. God gives us the opportunity to come to Him with our grief. And because of who He is, we can be confident that He is able to do something about it.
He changes hearts. He changes circumstances. He heals the broken. He makes a way.
Before Nehemiah could begin the work of rebuilding, he had to acknowledge what had been broken and how it impacted him. Before restoration could begin, the ruins had to be named. Time and again, David found comfort from the Lord after admitting what was going on in his heart.
Let’s take some time today to bring our feelings before God. Simply because we can. He already knows what we’re carrying, but He still invites us to tell Him. Don’t stop there. Surrender those burdens to Him and invite Him to heal what has been broken.
Question to Consider
What burden are you carrying because of what is broken around you?
Prayer Prompt
Pray for the strength to let go of your grief and trust that God will restore what’s been broken in His time.
