Daily Devotional – Monday, August 10, 2026
The God of heaven Himself will prosper us. Therefore, we His servants will arise and build.
Nehemiah 2:20, NKJV
Nehemiah had seen the condition of Jerusalem for himself. The walls were broken down, the gates had been burnt, and the city was exposed. He had prayed about it and asked God to give him favour. Now he was standing in Jerusalem with a huge job in front of him. The opposition had already started. Sanballat, Tobiah, and Geshem mocked him and questioned what he was trying to do. Nehemiah could see the broken walls and hear the voices against him, yet he did not turn back. He told them, “The God of heaven Himself will prosper us; therefore, we His servants will arise and build.”
What Happens When You Get Up?
Nehemiah was not pretending that the work would be easy. He knew what he was looking at. The walls were actually broken, the gates really had been burnt, and the people had a lot of work ahead of them. Still, he believed God was with them. That belief moved him to action. He did not say, “God will prosper us, so there is nothing for us to do.” He said, “Therefore we His servants will arise and build.” They trusted God, gathered together, and started putting the walls back up. Their confidence in God did not keep them from working. It gave them the courage to begin.
That can be difficult for us. We may pray about something for months while quietly hoping God will solve it without requiring anything from us. We pray for peace in a relationship, yet avoid the conversation we need to have. We ask God to improve our finances, yet we keep making the same decisions that created the problem. We ask Him to open a door, but we do not prepare for what is on the other side. Prayer matters. Trust matters. Still, there are times when the answer to our prayer begins with getting up and doing what we already know needs to be done.
What Are You Doing While You Wait?
Maybe you have your own broken wall right now. Perhaps it is a relationship that needs attention, a habit you have been excusing, or a responsibility you keep postponing. Maybe there is a step of faith you know you need to take, but you are waiting until everything feels right. Nehemiah did not have perfect conditions. The walls were still in ruins, and the opposition was still there. He simply knew that something had to be done. He trusted God enough to begin, even though he could not see the whole road ahead.
So pray, and then take the next step. If you need to, apologise. If you need to start again, then start. If you need to learn something, just begin learning. If God has placed a responsibility in your hands, stop waiting for perfect conditions and get to work. You do not need to know how everything will fit together before you start. Nehemiah trusted the God of heaven, gathered the people, and started rebuilding. Sometimes faith looks like kneeling before God. Sometimes it looks like standing up afterwards, picking up the tools, and getting to work.
Prayer
Lord, help me to trust You without using my faith as an excuse for inaction. Give me the courage to take the next step, the wisdom to know what that step should be, and the strength to keep going when the work becomes difficult.
