Nehemiah is a 2021 Mood
For many, 2020 was an awakening. For the first time in history, protests were held in all 50 states in response to the horrific, brutal, and senseless murder of Mr. George Flyod. Even in “alabaster-white cities with negligible black populations”, as Gene Demby of NPR’s Code Switch noted, Black Lives Matter marches and protests were held. Evangelical leaders, who in the past have opted to be congenial in instances of police brutality felt the need to utter the words, “black lives matter.”
There was something about that eight-minute and forty-six-second video that just hit differently. As police brutality plus a contentious election multiplied by a global pandemic put the disparities facing communities of black and brown people, racism, and White Nationalism on grander display, folks who considered themselves “woke” because to question their “wokeness.” Every video, tweet, dropped charges, and reports of the alarming percentage of black and brown people dying from COVID-19 in comparison to their white counterparts called America into a reckoning—“the action of calculating or estimating” the depths of racism in America.
Nehemiah’s Awakening
When I reflect on the event of 2020 and January 6th, I’m reminded of the book of Nehemiah. In the opening act of this book, we encounter a man, who bears the name of the book, unaware of the condition of his homeland, Jerusalem. Nehemiah, residing more than a thousand miles away and over 130 hundred years since the destruction of Jerusalem and exile of his people, was unaware of the hardships his people were facing. Though he was a minority in Persia forced to live as a servant, he had done well for himself. He was a cupbearer to the king. It was hard work, but it came with a comfortable and luxurious life.
Nehemiah was awakened to the devastation of his people by a visit from his brother, who candidly reports, “The remnant in the province, who survived the exile, are in great trouble and disgrace. Jerusalem’s walls have been broken down, and its gates have been burned” (Nehemiah 1:3)
The prophet Jeremiah, in the book of Lamentations, gives us detailed insight into the devastation saying,
The nursing baby’s tongue
Clings to the roof of his mouth
from thirst.
Infants beg for food,
But no one gives them any.
Those who used to eat delicacies
are destitute in the streets;
those who were reared
in purple garments
huddle in trash heaps.
The hands
of compassionate women
have cooked their own children;
they became their food
during the destruction
of my dear people.
(Lamentations 4: 4-5, 10)
Nehemiah’s Reckoning
Through prayer and fasting, Nehemiah takes his grief and concern to the Lord. In his prayer closet, he laments, confesses Israel's sin, and asks God to renew HIs concern for Israel based on his character and covenant (Nehemiah 1:4-11)
However, Nehemiah doesn’t stop there. He adds a reckoning to his awakening. His awareness of what’s happening in his hometown leads him to action. First, he gets before the Lord to calculate the devastation of his people and determine based on his resources and their needs how he can best help.
Then, at the end of his prayer, he asks God to “grant him compassion in the presence” of the king (Nehemiah 1:11). Nehemiah recognizes that his position as the king’s cupbearer could be a means by which he can bring relief and security to his people. Because of prayer, when asked by the king, “What is your request?” Nehemiah is prepared to present the king with a plan to secure the resources he needs to rebuild the gates and the city wall (Nehemiah 2:4-8).
Through his reckoning, Nehemiah teaches us three things to help us move past an awakening to action:
(1) Prayer is the First Action Step: Before Nehemiah does anything else he takes his grief to the Lord in prayer. He doesn’t go to the king first, he goes to God. He knows full well his success is dependent on God, not his persuasiveness or strategic planning. It’s also in prayer that Nehemiah is reminded of God’s character and covenant. It is from here, that Nehemiah finds the courage and hope to move forward in being a conduit of justice for his people.
(2) Understand the Real Problem: There were several problems in Jerusalem. As we read in Jeremiah’s account from Lamentations, the people were suffering from extreme starvation. However, Nehemiah doesn’t ask the king for resources to set up a food bank. Instead, he asks for “timber to rebuild the gates of the temple’s fortress” and city walls. Why is this Nehemiah’s priority? Rebuilding the gates and walls of Jerusalem was a priority to Nehemiah because the nations living outside of Jerusalem were exploiting the remnant within and impending on their ability to flourish. The reestablishment of the wall would protect them from thieves who sought to take advantage of Israel’s vulnerability.
Even though extreme starvation may seem like a more prominent issue, a food bank would’ve been a temporary solution—nothing more than a bandaid. By thoroughly calculating the devastation in Jerusalem and its root cause, Nehemiah realized that building a wall would lead to fixing the other problems plaguing Jerusalem.
Just like in Nehemiah’s time, the problems in America are vast and oftentimes, what we see is just what lies on the surface. It’s easy to want to react, want to see swift repercussions, but what we need is to sit still, read books, watch documentaries, and listen to those more knowledgeable than us to understand the root of the problem. For the past decade, the Church has been trying to rid this country of racism through evangelism, multi-ethnic churches, and “listening.” These are good and noble pursuits, but as 2020 has taught us, it doesn’t get our ax close enough to the root.
(3) Leverage the Resources You Have: Nehemiah leveraged the resources he had to meet the need before him. Like Moses, he took what was in his hand and allowed God to use it for His glory and the salvation of Israel. Likewise, we need to use our time, talents, and resources. If you are a good teacher, use your gift to teach kids how to read. Literacy rates have a direct correlation to incarceration rates. “Prisons actually base some of their future planning on third and fourth-grade literacy rates.” If you are an artist, use your artistry to awaken others to the devastation of racism in America. If you are a writer or a pastor, bring people to a place of reckoning through your words and exhortations. If you look out into your community and are not only grieved but also see ways to possible solutions, consider going into politics. Use whatever resources God has given you to overturn the devastation of the marginalized and vulnerable.
Nehemiah is a 2021 Mood
From the start, opposition was waiting for Nehemiah in Jerusalem. “When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard that someone had come to pursue the prosperity of the Israelites, they were greatly displeased (Nehemiah 2:10). These two men did everything from mocking Nehemiah and the Israelites while they rebuilt the wall to plotting with other nations to fight against them in hopes of bringing the reconstruction of Jerusalem to an end. However, Nehemiah and his men refused to be distracted and continued to mind God’s business. They prayed, appointed guards, went back to work with a shovel in one hand and a sword in the other, and left their mockers in God’s hands.
What we witnessed on January 6th was a mockery of injustice. While we can be sure it will not be the last, those suffering the devastation of racism and injustice in this country cannot afford for us to get distracted. Like Nehemiah, we need to pray, keep our hand to the plow, and leave the mockers of justice in God’s hand. He will take care of them (Psalm 1:4-6, 37:1-6; Nehemiah 4:7-15; also see the second article from this series, Pharaoh, White Nationalism, and Hope).
Additionally, Nehemiah didn’t worry himself with the nobles who refused to “lift one finger to help their supervisors” (Nehemiah 3:5). When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he shared his plans to rebuild the wall to “the Jews, priests, nobles, officials, and the rest of the people who would be doing the work. However, as priests got to work on the Sheep Gate, countrymen on the Fish Gate, and officials on the other four, the nobles did nothing. Yet, we see nothing of Nehemiah or others compelling them to work. Instead of using their energy and time to
convince the nobles to join in on the work, they redirect that energy to the task of rebuilding the wall.
If someone is still sleeping on racism after 2020, it’s because they don't want to be awakened. And though we can be emotionally impacted by their lack of involvement in matters of injustice and racism, there are some of us, who need to set aside our professors’ coats and megaphones and pick up a shovel to rebuild the walls of our communities. Some are called to stay and keep doing the work of educating and using their Twitter megaphone prophetically, but many of us need to get to the work of rebuilding and resourcing. For those in this last category, let Nehemiah be your 2021 mood.
– Written By Yana Conner
Bio: Yana Jenay Conner is a writer and Bible teacher who seeks help others think well about faith
and culture. She is the Content Creator for Pray.March.Act. and wrote the Jude 3 Project’s
curriculum, Through the Eyes of Color. You can find more of her writing at
everydayyanajenay.com.