But some prayer should NOT be outsourced.
Re-reading Nehemiah refreshed my prayer life. Here is a leader who accomplished a lot and his ministry is scaffolded with 5 ways of praying.
Nehemiah really helped me. I'm an activist, not a contemplative. I don't run at the front of the prayer pack, I'm a lagger. But I AM in the race and I WILL finish this marathon. Nehemiah's prayer life is an achievable model for any leader.
1. Anchoring Prayer (1:4). Bad news inspires Nehemiah's first prayer. The city he loves is in decay and he knows he must respond. His "call" comes as he weeps, fasts and wrestles with God for three full months. This long season of anxious prayer anchors his new vocation in a new city with new challenges and new people. Leaders need these seasons of deep discernment. They are infrequent (only once in this book), but invaluable. While such episodes can't be rushed and are often painful, they stabilise ministry for decades.
2. Arrow Prayers (2:4). Nehemiah's second prayer stands is stark contract. It's a quickie. He shoots it up to God as he draws breath to answer the king. Godly leaders will shoot dozens of arrow-prayers every day. Afraid? Shoot an arrow-prayer. Perplexed? Fire away. Dumbfounded? Stuck? Discouraged? Awestruck? All are occasions for quickie prayers. Do it continually (1 Thess 5:17).
3. WIT Prayer (4:9). Stands for "We're in trouble" prayer. All great projects get into trouble, and there is no need to pretend things are good when they are not. Nehemiah simply rallied the people to prayer. He undid his trouble makers by calling on God and posting a guard. Leaders gather people in times of crisis and put courage into them. They urge the people to call out to God together and they expect God to join the team.
4. Armour Prayer (6:9). Very few leaders actually have the proverbial "tough hide". Most of us get hurt. That hurt can become toxic. As Nehemiah's opposition escalated he called on God for Strength. He also ranted to God (not his co-leaders, family or flock) about his enemies. He preserved his soul by first, asking God for protection and second, expelling his leadership bile God-ward not people-ward (4:4,5; 6:14).
5. PTL Prayer (9:5). This is "Praise the Lord" prayer. Nehemiah and his colleagues led the people in celebration of a job well done. They took time to sing, pray, rededicate and praise God. Leaders offer praise and stir it up in the hearts of God followers.
These three forms of private prayer and two of corporate prayer make a strong and reliable scaffolding for ministry. These are prayers I cannot outsource. And the more I practice them, the less I want to.
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