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“O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God who keeps his covenant of unfailing love with those who love him and obey his commands, listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel.” (Nehemiah 1:5–6)

Nehemiah, touched by the need of his people, “sat down and wept and mourned” and “was fasting and praying before the God of heaven” (Nehemiah 1:4 NASB). In Nehemiah 1:4–11, I find four very significant factors that characterize the lives of competent, spiritual leaders.

“Things are not going well for those who returned to the province of Judah. They are in great trouble and disgrace. The wall of Jerusalem has been torn down, and the gates have been destroyed by fire.” When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. (Nehemiah 1:3–4)

That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad. (Ecclesiastes 12:13–14)

That’s the whole story. Here now is my final conclusion: Fear God and obey his commands, for this is everyone’s duty. God will judge us for everything we do, including every secret thing, whether good or bad. (Ecclesiastes 12:13–14)

Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” (Ecclesiastes 12:1)

Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning. When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to come is meaningless. (Ecclesiastes 11:7–8)

Light is sweet; how pleasant to see a new day dawning. When people live to be very old, let them rejoice in every day of life. But let them also remember there will be many dark days. Everything still to come is meaningless. (Ecclesiastes 11:7–8)

Just as you cannot understand the path of the wind or the mystery of a tiny baby growing in its mother’s womb, so you cannot understand the activity of God, who does all things. Plant your seed in the morning and keep busy all afternoon, for you don’t know if profit will come from one activity or another—or maybe both. (Ecclesiastes 11:5‑6)

Stay away from fools, for you won’t find knowledge on their lips. (Proverb 14:7)

So much for analysis. It’s time for application. For the sake of space, I will limit my comments here to a major heartache—being married to a fool. Some people are living with a marriage partner who has turned out to be totally different from the person they thought they married. And now they realize they’ve got a fool on their hands. Well-meaning friends and spiritual leaders may give all kinds of advice or teaching, but nothing works.

Wise words bring approval, but fools are destroyed by their own words. Fools base their thoughts on foolish assumptions, so their conclusions will be wicked madness; they chatter on and on. No one really knows what is going to happen; no one can predict the future. (Ecclesiastes 10:12–14)

A close look at Solomon’s journal entry reveals at least four ways a fool demonstrates his or her folly:

Mouth and Words