"Those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint." Isaiah 40:31 (NIV)
"They said to me, . . . 'The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.' When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven." Nehemiah 1:3-4 (NLT)
- Mourn – Express your hurt to God
"God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted." Matthew 5:4 (NLT)
"When doubts filled my mind, your comfort gave me renewed hope and cheer." Psalm 94:19 (NLT)
"Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning." Psalm 30:5b (NLT)
"For when I am weak, then I am strong." 2 Cor. 12:10b (NIV)
Songs for the hurting:http://sptfy.com/Y2u
Action Plan: Make a personal playlist of songs that express reliance on and trust in God through hard times. Listen to it throughout each day this week, and find a verse or phrase that expresses your emotion and sing that to God.
- Fast – Focus your heart on God
"Turn to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning." Joel 2:12b (NKJV)
"So I gave my attention to the Lord God to seek Him by prayer and supplications, with fasting . . ."Daniel 9:3 (NASB)
"Now set your heart and your soul to seek the LORD your God." 1 Chron. 22:19a (NKJV)
Action Plan: Do you find yourself easily distracted during the day? Distractions, though not always bad, rob us of precious time. This week, set distractions such as social media aside and get out in nature and talk to God instead.
- Pray – Ask for help from God
"LORD, my Rock, I call out to you for help." Psalm 28:1a (NCV)
- Recognize who God is
"Then I said: 'O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel. I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father's house, have committed against you.'" Nehemiah 1:5-6 (NIV)
"I pray that you will begin to understand how incredibly great his power is to help those who believe him. . . ." Ephesians 1:19 (TLB)
- Confess who you are
"But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness." 1 John 1:9 (NLT)
- Call on God's promises
"Please remember the promise you made to Moses. You told him that if we were unfaithful, you would scatter us among foreign nations. But you also said that no matter how far away we were, we could turn to you and start obeying your laws. Then you would bring us back to the place where you have chosen to be worshiped."Nehemiah 1:8-9 (CEV)
Action Plan: Use a Bible app, like YouVersion, to search for promises. Find the chapter and verse references and look them up in your Bible. Choose 1-3 verses that speak to your strongest needs and write them on paper. We tend to remember what we write down.
- Ask for specific help
"'O Lord, let your ear be attentive to the prayer of this your servant and to the prayer of your servants who delight in revering your name. Give your servant success today by granting him favor in the presence of this man.' I was cupbearer to the king." Nehemiah 1:11 (NIV)
Weekly Action Steps
We recommit our lives to Jesus Christ. Text NEWSTART (1 word) to 83000 or email newstart@saddleback.com
We express our gratitude to God for his goodness by giving back to him. Because of your faithful generosity, we have been able to provide food and supplies to over 600,000 people in Southern California during this COVID crisis. Give at saddleback.com/give.
We meet in small groups online to discuss what we have heard. To join a group, text SMALLGROUP to 83000 or email smallgroup@saddleback.com.
To be baptized, email mYBAPTISM@saddleback.com.
Listen to our "Doable Discipleship" and "The Well" podcasts from our Saddleback Growth team at Saddleback.com/learn
