Nehemiah 9:31 But in your great mercy you did not put an end to them or abandon them, for you are a gracious and merciful God.

Nehemiah has given quite a litany of the sins of Israel, without going into very many details. In context, the people who had returned to the land from Babylon were in a tight situation, oppressed by gov­ernment regulations and lower-level flunkies. (Now that sounds fami­liar!) He isn’t claiming total innocence on the part of the returnees, but he is in essence reminding God of how merciful He had been in the past, and is asking for more mercy in the moment. It’s not like God would forget! However, the people with whom Nehemiah was working needed to remember the character of God in order to have their faith strengthened. Nehemiah himself was obviously very familiar with the Torah, and he wanted the people to remember it as well. We get into all sorts of messes, but if we realign our hearts and repent, God is always here. It was that assurance that gave Nehemiah the strength he needed, and it will do the same for us.

I can certainly relate! I’m in the process of writing my autobiography, for the express purpose of recounting God’s grace toward me so that others may be encouraged and He be glorified. I’m at the point that, whereas I do get stressed by situations and demands on me, anxiety about the future is pretty well gone. I have experienced God’s faithfulness, His gracious mercy, to a point that it is increasingly easy to rest, relax, and rejoice in Him, as He explicitly told me to do several years ago. My desire at this point is that those around me may have that same assurance, so that in gratitude we may be fully obedient to Him, for His will to be done in and through us for His glory.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for how You’ve been drawing me back into the writing project, and for the people who have approached me for mentoring. May I indeed be faithful and obedient to You, in Your strength because I have demonstrated countless times I can’t do it on my own. May all of Your plans and purposes for me be fulfilled, on Your schedule for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!