Every once in a while you read a positive story about coaching. I particularly like examples of the coach who goes back home to his or her alma mater to rebuild a struggling program. These coaches not only have a passion for their home schools, but also a plan to put the schools back on the map. It may take time to rebuild, but for the Christian coach, it will also take something else: prayer, and a lot of it.

Nehemiah was a man of similar focus. What do we know about him? If you read his story in the Old Testament, you'll find that he was not a contractor, but a cupbearer. He worked for the king who put out a decree that no one would rebuild Jerusalem's walls. Nehemiah had much at stake, but he knew he had to act. The town of his family was in ruins, and he knew he had to do something about it!

Nehemiah had a passion (his people in Jerusalem), a plan (to rebuild the wall) and a prayer, many of which are recorded in the Bible. Nehemiah understood one thing well: rebuilding anything in life required prayer and a plan to get the job done. We know by reading his book that it took only 52 days to rebuild the wall, but it was not an easy task.

Maybe you have a wall (sin/struggle) in your life that needs to be rebuilt or restored. Do you have a passion to see it changed? Do you have a plan to make it happen? Are you committed to prayer--even if you have to pray every day for 52 or more days? Today, I want to challenge you to do just that: get on your knees and pray that God would move and rebuild the "walls" in your life that seem so big. It won’t be easy, but it will be worth it.