Nehemiah 9 is mostly a recounting of the Israelite history, and it's tragic... every time they seem to be close to getting something right, they mess it up again. Over and over and over again -- it's heartbreaking, and you want to sit them down, look them in the eye, and ask them to stop making the same mistakes, to think forward for a bit and maybe avoid making the same mistake again.
Of course, we often need someone to do the same for us! We don't think forward very well... we make the same mistakes over and over again. We act impulsively. We don't think about the consequences of our actions, who it might hurt and how it might hurt them. What if we did that -- when faced with a decision, think about how it might hurt someone we love, about the selfish elements of it. It's easy to rationalize things under pressure, so how do we create space and relieve some of that pressure, thinking things all the way through. The Israelites failed to do this and, as a result, they suffered devastating consequences from repeating failure, time and time again. May we learn from their mistakes! May we recognize the blessings that surround us, and may we enjoy the rich yield without giving it over to someone else who rules over us due to shortsighted decisions we make that allow sin to rule over our lives.
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