I said yesterday that the book of Nehemiah was written in first person; it's a book of determination and plotting, of steadfastness to God and intrigue. Because it's written in first person, I got into the first chapter and was reading it as a book read for "recreation".

Nehemiah is Scripture, and as with all Scripture, it is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

In chapter one we meet Nehemiah. He was in Susa, which still exists today in modern-day Iran. He would have come to Susa when the Jews were exiled, but he still had at least one brother in Jerusalem. "Certain men" came to Nehemiah from Jerusalem and Nehemiah asked them for a report.

"The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire."

Nehemiah wept - for days. He wept, and fasted and prayed...and repented. And He asked God for mercy.

"O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of your servant, and to the prayer of your servants who delight to fear your name, and give success to your servant today, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man."

Who was Nehemiah? He was the son of Hacaliah, brother of Hanani. He worked in the palace and was apparently on good terms with the king.

The first chapter concludes with a single line:

Now I was cupbearer to the king.

Winged sphinx from the palace of Darius the Great at Susa.

what does this mean to us?

Parts of Christianity are broken down.  Do we weep for the brokeness of Christianity?  Or do we seek to hide our heads in the sand with the make-believe story that things are "ok"?

In a time when false doctrine and false teachings abound, do we weep and seek to restore things to Biblical order?

How broken are we, for the brokeness of the body of Christ?

My lead teacher - Ann's mom was recently diagnosed with cancer and passed away Wednesday afternoon. Ann's aunt passed away yesterday. Even a strong Christian family is left reeling with a 1-2 punch like that. Saturday is the funeral, and it is also Ann's birthday. The family needs prayer.

Ann's parents are Christians and her dad requested that memorials be given to their denomination. This is becoming more common and (after a comment by coworker) I have a question.

If the denomination in question is not your own, do you (or would you) not to donate money in the name of a person who loved that denomination?

When my husband passed away, I did ask for donations to my church's youth group, for a specific project. While I didn't have this situation in mind (the not wanting to donate because of denominational differences), and while I realize that nobody would have told me that they were offended by the request, I do wonder, in hindsight, if that was the case.

Obviously, if it's a religion that is not Christian, it becomes a different question.