Rebuilding the Fortress of My Home

I opened Nehemiah chapter 1 not long ago, and the words hit me like a fist to the chest. “The wall of Jerusalem is broken down, and its gates are destroyed by fire.” I saw rubble. I saw exposure. I saw vulnerability. And then, in a moment I wasn’t expecting, the Holy Spirit turned the camera around on me. Those weren’t just ancient stones lying in the dust; those were the walls of my own household, my own heart, my own family fortress. Years of little compromises, unchecked habits, entertainment I’d let in, boundaries I’d stopped enforcing, prayers I’d grown lazy about. The gates were burned, and I hadn’t even noticed how much enemy traffic had been walking straight through the front door.

I wept like Nehemiah wept. I mourned. I fasted. I confessed. And somewhere in that raw place, a holy burden dropped into my spirit: This stops now. These walls go back up, brick by brick, sin by sin, habit by habit. I picked up the shovel in one hand—work, discipline, repentance, new non-negotiables—and the sword of the Word in the other. No more passivity. No more “it’s not that bad.” I began the rebuild right there in my own house: online social distractions ended, conversations restarted, Scripture spoken out loud again, prayer over every room, every day. It’s messy work. Opposition still mocks from the sidelines. But every stone set back in place is a declaration: my family is a city set on a hill, and the gates will no longer hang open.

If you’re reading this and something just tightened in your chest, ask yourself the question that wrecked me: Is the burden you feel for the broken walls of your own life—your marriage, your children, your thought life, your private choices—big enough yet to get you moving? Or are you still telling yourself the rubble “isn’t that bad”?

Nehemiah didn’t wait for permission from the culture. He confessed, he prayed, he planned, and he built—with a trowel in one hand and a sword in the other. I’m calling us back to that same holy stubbornness. The enemy wants the walls down so he can plunder what’s precious to God. But the Spirit of God is raising up Nehemiahs right now—men and women who will say, “Not in my house. Not on my watch.”

Pick up your shovel. Pick up your sword. The King has already given the decree: the walls can rise again. Start today. The fortress of your life, your family, your walk with God is worth every brick.

What section of your wall is the Spirit putting His finger on right now? The burden you feel is your invitation. Don’t silence it. Answer it.

Let’s rebuild. The city—and your household—will be a praise in the earth again.