Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26.

I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. Ephesians 3:16-17. I think I read and reread that verse 5 times today.

I couldn’t help but think about the futility of who and what we are without God as I read our chapter, Nehemiah 13, the final chapter of this book. And three times Nehemiah asks God to remember his faithfulness to Him, v. 14, 22, 31. He was so dismayed at what he was seeing.

He had gone back to Artaxerxes, king of Babylon, and when he returned to Jerusalem, things were once again in disarray. The people went back to doing things without their hearts turned to God. Tobiah, one of the ones who actively worked against the rebuilding of the temple and the wall of Jerusalem, is now living within the temple itself. The son of the high priest is now the son-in-law of Sanballat, another who actively worked against all that God wanted done in Jerusalem. Had these men turned to the living God to worship Him only?

They are living in the ruins of a great city that would not remain faithful to our Creator God. What about us? What ruins do we live among or will find ourselves living among at Jesus’s return? Truly, it’s a matter of our hearts. Our Creator God – Father, Son, Spirit – asks one thing. Love Him with all your heart, all your mind, all your strength. Is that truly so hard?

When we do love God, remarkable changes happen within us. We begin to notice nudges of love from God guiding us. We begin to live lives noticing His love for us and for others. We begin to have faith, not from ourselves; but His faith enabling us to believe and trust Him. There are times when I can feel His hand holding mine – not because I’m special because I’m not. Because I have needed Him and He is there. He is faithful. He is kind. He is patient. He is strong when I am weak with discouragement looking at this world and the mess we have made and stubbornly cling to. It’s no wonder the people kept straying in Nehemiah’s day and every day of men including today. They don’t know God. A choice. When we begin to understand the impossibility of good in this world without God we reach a turning point. What road will we take? We don’t walk alone whether we realize that truth or not. But when we turn to Him in hope and dare to take His hand…we can feel the warmth of His hand holding ours and we can rejoice knowing everything is in His care. Good will not come because of us. Lift that burden from your frail shoulders. Trust in our Creator God and let Him be God. And then, joy of joy! Be with Him. It’s possible. Ask. He’s here. Always.