What is Nehemiah Prayer?
During the period of Babylonian exile, Nehemiah came to know that the wall of Jerusalem was brought down to ground, by the enemies, and its gates destroyed by fire!He was crestfallen when he came to know about the adversities of his people in Jerusalem. He took a pause from his daily life, sat down, wept 8c mourned for days, fasting and praying before the God of heaven. Even though he was prosperous and complacent in life, his heart was moved for his own nation.
Likewise, in this present time, The Holy Catholic Church is undergoing immense amount of trails and struggles. In order to resist the attack of evil and strengthen our Church, let’s unite our hearts in one spirit and pray for the church as Nehemiah prayed for Jerusalem.
Who can join this prayer?
All people of God
All members of the Church
All religious communities, convents, monasteries around the world together as one army of God, united in prayer.
How can you join this prayer mission for the church?
10 Ways: Weapons of Nehemiah Prayer
1. Holy Mass: For the Holy Catholic Church, all Priests, Nuns and religious.
2. Adoration before Blessed Sacrament.
3. Liturgy of Hours.
4. Rosary.
5. Stations of the Cross.
6. Consecration to Immaculate Heart.
7. St. Joseph Prayer.
8. St. Michael's Prayer.
9. Pray for the conversion of sinners, pray for all who have either lost faith or gone away from church. (Divine Mercy, Jericho prayer)
10. Penance, Fasting, Abstinence, Almsgiving.
God help me rebuild my broken world
When you read through Nehemiah's prayer following the dismal report of Jerusalem's vulnerability and shame, you can see that his heart was broken. But it wasn't the ruined walls that broke Nehemiah's heart. It wasn't the burned gates. It wasn't even the desolate temple. There was only one factor in this entire situation that wounded Nehemiah to the heart: God's name was disgraced. The pagans not only mocked God's people, but they mocked God Himself.
Nehemiah experienced agony at the thought of the holy name of Yahweh being ridiculed by the pagans. So he went to his knees, and he prayed the threefold prayer in Nehemiah 1.
Nehemiah began his prayer with praise (Nehemiah 1:5)
When we pray, we must acknowledge that we stand before an awesome God who deserves our deepest reverence and respect. Because of Jesus, we can come to Him boldly -- but not arrogantly. If we want God to hear our prayers, then we must approach Him prayerfully, not pridefully. Our prayers will have no power until we learn to praise Him and recognize our complete dependence on Him.
Nehemiah persisted in prayer (Nehemiah 1:1, 1:4, 2:1).
Nehemiah was a prayer warrior -- he prayed, fasted, wept, and sought God's will for four months from the time he received the report about Jerusalem. Why? Was God reluctant to bless Nehemiah? No, God is eager to bless us, but His chosen means of distributing His blessings is through the power of prayer. Through prayer, God is able to perform miracles in and through us, but we must be willing to do what He wants, the way He wants it done. So while Nehemiah persisted in prayer, God was preparing him for battle.
Nehemiah prepared himself to do whatever God asked him to do (Nehemiah 1:11)
In prayer, Nehemiah identified himself as God's humble servant, and he asked God to give success to him as His servant, going about His business. You see, prayer is not an excuse for doing nothing. Prayer does not absolve us of the responsibility to act. When we pray, we are reporting for duty. We must be ready to surrender, to sacrifice, and to serve.
Nehemiah understood the simple equation: one + prayer = great power. One individual plus God is a majority in every situation. Are you ready to see the power of God work in and through you? Then watch out! As you pray, great power is coming.