So I contended with the rulers, and said, “Why is the house of God forsaken?” And I gathered them together and set them in their place. Nehemiah 13:11

Things tend to get abandoned and forsaken by people over time. They get busy with other things in life and forget about what is needed to be done. Many want to just relax and have fun and not take care of the necessary things. As that occurs, many of those things begin to fall apart, breaking down, being unable to accomplish what they were intended to accomplish.

Nehemiah noticed the house of God was not taken care of properly. He got angry with the rulers and asked them why they had forsaken the house of God.

It is easy in life to get so busy with life that one will either forget or just put to the side some of the more important things. People get busy in survival mode or trying to have fun and not wanting to work. Doing regular maintenance is not something that many desire to do, because it can be costly and takes time and effort.

Most people will never be in a position to have to take care of a physical church building themselves. Yet, there is a house of God that each one is directly responsible to take care of maintain. It is each individual believer’s personal soul and body. Every believer is a temple of God–a house for God dwell in.

In order to take care of the house of God, one’s own body and soul, one must not forsake it and maintain it on a daily basis. Maintenance of the soul takes time in prayer, studying and apply God’s word, times of worship and praise, repentance of and fleeing from sin. Believers must not forsake these activities.

As a believer, you are the temple of God, the house of God in which He can dwell. Do not allow His temple to fall into ruins and disrepair by living in sin.

Begin every moment with constant communion with God in prayer. Take time to study His word, memorize it and apply it to your life. Keep His temple clean from all the corruption of sin in this world.

Make your life one that God dwells in so closely that the world can see Him in you and in everything that you say and do.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that you will be the temple of God; that God will strengthen you in maintaining your life as clean and holy before Him; that the world will see God dwelling in you; and that you will never forsake the Lord your God in anything you say or do.