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Highlights from our Jacob’s Well Event… & our good friend Chris Tanner shares thoughts on Nehemiah & Ezra I’d like to thank Barb & Kevin Williar for hosting our event last Sunday night….what a great time to see one another & catch up! And special thanks to the band…Robert, Richard, Steve & Jeff, to our video friend Rick, and to Bonnie & Max Underwood, Sherri Knoy, Carol Burk, Sara Beth Tracy, Rick & Patty Story, my wife Sue Linn & our granddaughter Bella for all they did as well. Above are a few snapshots of the evening….. Looking forward to the next one, whenever it will be! And let me thank all those who came, those who support this ministry thru giving. And also let me encourage you to consider supporting the JACOB’S WELL MINISTRY, too if you’re led to. It’s a great ministry helping single Mom’s get prepared for the next challenges of their lives! jacobswellproject.com But this week we have a special guest writer for our devotional, Chris Tanner, the Lead Pastor at Georgetown Christian Church. Chris is in our PASTORS Finishing Well group that has been meeting nearly 5 years now. You’ll be blessed by his thoughts and challenges as he writes to us about Nehemiah & Ezra. Chris is a sharp young pastor who has wisdom beyond his years and a great heart for God’s people in the area. I appreciate so much his willingness to encourage us this week! CHRIS TANNER BIO… Chris met his wife, Andrea in high school in Southern Illinois. Married in ’01, they then moved to Southern Indiana in 2003 for ministry with Georgetown Christian. Since that time they’ve welcomed three kiddos into the world, and fostered a few more. Christ enjoys being part of all that the Lord is doing in His Kingdom, especially in Georgetown. He also enjoys cutting grass, smoking meats, hiking local trails, and kayaking Elkhorn Creek with friends. “NEHEMIAH…UP CLOSER & PERSONAL…” Nehemiah 1:3 “And they said to me, ‘The remnant there in the province who had survived the exile is in great trouble and shame. The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” (ESV) Nehemiah is devastated when he hears of the current state of Jerusalem and the surrounding area, his family’s home town and country. While he did not grow up there, the people who shaped his life did. What a heart for those who brought him into the world. Now he’s the cupbearer to the King & he’s living in exile, but it’s unlikely that he’s living miserably. The cup bearer to the king likely lived in the king’s palace. But despite what was likely going on around him, he could not take the news he’s been delivered. The report from Hanani on the conditions back home brings Nehemiah to tears. It’s not just the brief sniffle and a little catch your breath we get watching “TOY STORY”! Nehemiah is weeping and he weeps so deeply that he has to sit down. Memories of what mattered are what he is thinking about when he writes in Nehemiah 1:4… “As soon as I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days.” (ESV) I fondly remember growing up at home. Some may recall sitting around a dinner table every night, or maybe at least once in a while. You might think about the table and what was on it. Maybe you think about what was shared around that table. Things like victories, fears, struggles, plans, dreams and tough questions. Others remember the backyard playing catch with the family. Some of those conversations might have taken place in the backyard where you could share more freely while tossing the ball. Memories matter. Remember what matters compelled Nehemiah to action. Does it do the same with us? Nehemiah not only wept, but he fasted. I wonder how hard that would be, fasting while you are the king’s cupbearer? When we remember what really matters, maybe an area of life that is not like it used to be we might weep. I think Nehemiah’s weeping could have come for a variety of reasons. But I know this, he was NOT confused about where to go with his sorrow! He begins weeping and fasting and immediately where do we see Him turn? Let’s continue in verse 4…… “As soon as I heard these words, I sat down and wept and mourned for days, and I continued fasting and praying before the God of heaven.” I hope that the next time I see something that’s not right, it moves me like it moved Nehemiah. LORD, may You create in me a pure heart. Father, help me to weep with those who weep, and rejoice with those rejoice. LORD, open my eyes and renew my heart. I hope this is true too. When I see something in my mind’s eye. I hope that when I remember a memory that mattered, and it’s the right one that I didn’t respond the right way, that I’m quick to turn to the LORD with that. It seems like there are so many places I choose to turn with that sometimes…a spouse, a friend, and addiction (especially if it’s a new TV show I’ve heard great reviews about!) Nehemiah turns to the Lord, and he isn’t just turning to the Lord for HIS OWN COMFORT in this situation. He is repenting of the way that he has lived in sin. He has openly lived in rebellion against the LORD and His covenant. He confesses not only his SIN, but the sins of Israel, His people. This seems rather bold—he’s not their leader. But he’s confessing THEIR sins. He’s confessing his own along with theirs. Nehemiah is seeking his own restorationbefore the Lord, along with those of his nation. Does our repentance reach outside of our own life? Does it impact our family and our circle of social life? Nehemiah’s repentance came with weeping, and days of weeping and fasting. If you knew Nehemiah, you knew what was going on—God got a hold of him. I sure don’t know where this email will land in so many inboxes. Plenty of emails like this get lost in my inbox. But my prayer is that whether it’s a memory of home, the memory of a hurt that was at home, or whether it’s the forgetting of the Lord like Nehemiah experienced with all ofhis fellow Israelites, my prayer is that our response is REPENTANCE. Our response is the begging for the Lord to change our hearts, turn them toward Him, and then He would restore us! Christ Tanner, Lead Pastor at Georgetown Christian Church Thanks, Chris for reminding us that restoration always begins with a repentant heart that grieves the sins and foolishness of the past. As we commit to “finishing well” in this season of our lives, may our hearts remain tender before the Lord! Now to give you all a “heads up for what’s coming up”… The next few devotionals appearing on Sunday nights will be…. May 18th the Story of ESTHER (you’re stuck with me on this one!) May 25th MEMORIAL DAY (with a devo from our good retired military brother, Scott Ham) June 1st the Story of JOB (a great message from our friend, Mark Jones, Lead Pastor at Nelson Christian Church in Bardstown KY) June 8th the PSALMS (an highlight / overview from our friend, Matt Craig, Lead Pastor at First Christian Church in Scottsburg, IN) June 15th FATHERS’ DAY (a great devotional from our friend, Brian Drum, Lead Pastor at Zoah Christian Church in Scottsburg, IN) June 22nd PROVERBS (with some great insights from our good friend, Kevin Boehnlein) June 29th GOD’S FREEDOM for our NATION (by a dear friend and fellow-semi retired pastor Tim Goodman, from Hannibal MO) July 6th the MAJOR PROPHETS July 13th the MINOR PROPHETS July 20th the 400 YEARS OF SILENCE (our good friend and lead pastor of the Greenville Church Bobby Sorrells speaks to the time between the Ood Testament and the New Testament) July 27th MATTHEW (the gospel…to the Jews) August 4th MARK (the gospel… to the point) August 11th LUKE (the gospel….to all humanity) August 18th JOHN (the gospel….from a friend) August 25th ACTS (he’s back….our good friend who now lives in TENNESSEE, Neal Windham will bring great insight to this powerful book) Sept 1st ROMANS (Neal “Round 2” as he tackles the heavy-duty doctrinal book that “reformed” the church over 500 years ago) And the rest is mostly filled in but I’ll save that update for another time! So for those of us reading and “skimming ahead”, trying to REMEMBER many of the things we’ve learned thru the years….. here’s where we’re headed! Love you guys…. george
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