Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Nehemiah 9:1-15. Let’s go!
Nehemiah 9:1-2 (NIV)
1 On the twenty-fourth day of the same month, the Israelites gathered together, fasting and wearing sackcloth and having dust on their heads.
2 Those of Israelite descent had separated themselves from all foreigners. They stood in their places and confessed their sins and the wickedness of their fathers.
On verses 1-2: Earlier in the month, the Israelites gathered to celebrate, rejoice and hold a feast in accordance with God’s commands (8:13-18). Now just over two weeks later, the Israelites gather again, this time to fast, confess their sins and draw near to God.
What can we learn from this? In church, there is a place for rejoicing and celebrating, and there’s also a place for mourning, weeping and confessing sin. A healthy church is one that does both: we rejoice and we repent, we celebrate victories and we confess sin, we party and we pray.