From the desk of Executive Director, Gary Garland:

“So I sent messengers to them with this reply: I am carrying on a great project and cannot go down. Why should the work stop while I leave it and go down to you?” ~Nehemiah 6:3

I find the Book of Nehemiah to be a powerful guide for the shared work Christ has given to the local church and to Love INC. Nehemiah hears from returning exiles that “the wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates have been burned with fire”. A city without walls was vulnerable to attack, making human flourishing impossible. Deeply saddened, Nehemiah asks King Artaxerxes to allow him to return to Jerusalem and rebuild its walls.

Through our Season of Listening conversations, pastors and leaders shared the many “broken walls” they see here in Lake County. These “broken walls” impact our community’s ability to flourish and are in need of repair. They include loneliness, fragmented and hurting families, shrinking churches, mental health struggles, and material & spiritual poverty.

How might Love INC and the Church mimic Nehemiah in rebuilding “broken walls” in our community as we seek our common, Christ-centered goals of Unity & Transformation? Let me suggest three ways in which the Book of Nehemiah guides us in rebuilding broken community and restoring God’s people back to Him:

1. Prayer: Nehemiah’s greatest tool was prayer. As he faced serious threats and attacks from both internal and external forces, he took them to the Lord. Let us also come to Christ, with prayers that shout of His glory, repentance of our sins, and obedience to His will.
2. Humble service: Nehemiah could have stayed put in his comfortable role as cupbearer for the king. Instead, he chose to get out and do the hard work needed. Let us step out of the safety of our homes and our churches to where God is calling us to be, even the dark places.
3. Unify God’s People: Chapter 3 of Nehemiah has an amazing list of all those involved in the building of the wall. High priests, priests, and rulers worked side by side with merchants and goldsmiths. God’s people back then put aside their worldly differences to give themselves fully to God’s work. I pray today’s Church can do the same!

Thank you for considering a final 2024 gift to advance the work of Love INC and the Church.

In this season of waiting on our Savior’s birth, let us ready our hearts to do as Nehemiah did by praying, serving, and unifying. I wish you, and all those you love, a very Merry Christmas!

Blessings,
Gary Garland, Executive Director