The mercy of God expressed through a king
Good day, beautiful people,
I hope that this blog post finds you well?
I just wanted to remind us all that God Almighty, the all-knowing One, the omniscient One, sees your heart.
When it comes to emotional intelligence, I’m telling you God knows exactly how you feel. He shared in our human experience, which is why Christ is referred to as the perfect high priest.
Hebrews 4:14-16 ~ “So then, since we have a great High Priest who has entered heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to what we believe. This High Priest of ours understands our weaknesses, for he faced all of the same testings we do, yet he did not sin. So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it most.”
Today’s passage has been inspired by Nehemiah 2:2.
Nehemiah 2:1-2 ~ “Early the following spring, in the month of Nisan, during the twentieth year of King Artaxerxes’ reign, I was serving the king his wine. I had never before appeared sad in his presence. So the king asked me, “Why are you looking so sad? You don’t look sick to me. You must be deeply troubled.” Then I was terrified,”
Nehemiah was an intercessor (Nehemiah chapter 1). He cared about the welfare of his people and the state of the holy land. He spent time praying for the returned exiles because he heard that things were not going well for the exiles who returned to the province of Judah (disturbing news).
Because of Nehemiah’s demeanour, King Artaxerxes was emotionally intelligent enough to pick up that Nehemiah looked emotionally disturbed rather than physically sick. The favour of God upon Nehemiah’s life led the king to release Nehemiah to go back and help assist the exiles in Judah. Isn’t God great and full of mercy!
I believe that there are a couple of things that we as believers can learn from the above passage with regards to being attentive to the needs of others and giving glory to God through loving our neighbours ourselves.
1. We should have a sincere/genuine concern about the well-being of those around us. Our love should be sincere and not fake. Get to know those around you so that you can better pick up changes in a person’s disposition. This is important because sometimes a smile can hide a heavy heart.
Proverbs 14:13 ~ “Laughter can conceal a heavy heart, but when the laughter ends, the grief remains.”
Romans 12:9-10 ~ “Don’t just pretend to love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Hold tightly to what is good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honouring each other.”
2. Care for people’s souls. It is not God’s desire for any to perish but for all to have eternal life. So one of our priorities as believers should be to see others saved.
2 Peter 3:9 ~ “The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.”
3. Ask the Holy Spirit to fill your heart with the love of God so that you’re better able to express compassion, comfort, kindness, and care to those who cross your path. And in doing so, we end up becoming more Christ-like.
Ephesians 4:32 ~ “Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.”
I hope you enjoy today’s post. God bless and keep shining bright for Christ.
Love from
Christian Lady After God’s Own Heart 💜
