On December 27th and 28th, we're excited for the opportunity to experience church outside of our walls. While we won't be meeting in person, Church In the City allows us to worship and to experience God's presence in new ways. Here, you will find activities for every age and learning style to help you draw near to God and each other. Experience this with your family, life group, or on your own. We hope you will feel connected to God and to our community even when we can't be together.
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Work your way through the activities and resources we've provided below for your Church in the City experience. Feel free to do as many as you like as an individual, with your family, or your life group.
Take some time to read through the message below about the prayer from the prophet Nehemiah. We believe there is so much to learn about who God is and how prayer can guide us into the New Year.
We have also provided a worship playlist for you to enjoy as you spend time away from the church building this season.
The Prayer of Nehemiah
A new year often brings both hope and heaviness—gratitude for God’s faithfulness mixed with the weight of unfinished plans, personal failures, and uncertain paths. Nehemiah knew this tension well. As a Jewish exile serving the king of Persia, he heard of Jerusalem’s broken walls and was deeply burdened for God’s people. Before he ever stood before the king or lifted a stone, he prayed. His prayer positioned him to act with God’s strength and direction—and it can do the same for us.
Let’s begin by reading this prayer:
Nehemiah 1:4–11
4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said, “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, 6 listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned! 7 We have sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees, and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses. 8 “Please remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the nations. 9 But if you return to me and obey my commands and live by them, then even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth,[b] I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’ 10 “The people you rescued by your great power and strong hand are your servants. 11 O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me.[c] Put it into his heart to be kind to me.”
1. Come before God with HONESTY (v. 4)
Nehemiah begins by weeping, fasting, and acknowledging the brokenness around him. We often want to rush forward and forget the things that hurt—yet God invites us to bring our real selves before Him. Reflection allows God to reveal what needs healing and where He wants to lead us in the year ahead.
NEW YEAR INVITATION:
Lay before God the disappointments, wounds, and uncertainties you carry. Allow God to be with you in this time as you approach Him with honesty.
2. WORSHIP before you worry (v. 5-6)
Nehemiah starts not with the problem, but with praise: “O Lord, God of heaven, the great and awesome God…” Worship lifts our eyes from the storm to God who is sovereign, faithful, and fully in control. It resets our vision before we ask for anything else.
NEW YEAR INVITATION:
Take some time to listen to the playlist that our Worship Pastor Tori has assembled for us on this page. Focus on God and his worthiness to be praised!
3. CONFESS and cling to God’s Promises (vv. 6–9)
Nehemiah confesses his sins and the sins of his people, recognizing the need for spiritual renewal. Then he anchors his prayer in God’s promises—not his feelings. Scripture reminds us that God’s presence, wisdom, mercy, and power remain with us always.
Where do you need God to cleanse, restore, or realign your heart?
What attitudes or habits need to stay behind in the old year?
NEW YEAR INVITATION:
Ask God to forgive what must stay behind and let His promises shape your expectations for the year.
4. Pray BOLDLY for God’s Favor and Mission (v. 11)
Nehemiah prays specifically: “Please grant me success today.” When we seek God’s heart, we gain courage to ask Him for bold, God-sized things. As a church, we also lift up our mission—praying for God’s provision, wisdom, and favor as we work to establish a strong foundation for ministry in our city.
What is God calling you to rebuild this year?
What step of faith is He asking you to take?
Where do you need His supernatural favor?
NEW YEAR INVITATION:
This is the moment to pray bold, clear, God-sized prayers. Is your prayer for this year big enough, demanding faith to rely on God?
Church, Let’s begin this year like Nehemiah:
With honesty.
With worship.
With confession and promise-filled faith.
With boldness for God’s mission.
If we begin the year with Nehemiah’s prayer, we position ourselves not simply for a better year—but for a God-shaped year.
READ and REFLECT
Read the passage from Nehemiah 1: 4-11 again, noting anything that stands out to you.
Nehemiah 1:4-11
4 When I heard this, I sat down and wept. In fact, for days I mourned, fasted, and prayed to the God of heaven. 5 Then I said, “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, 6 listen to my prayer! Look down and see me praying night and day for your people Israel. I confess that we have sinned against you. Yes, even my own family and I have sinned! 7 We have sinned terribly by not obeying the commands, decrees, and regulations that you gave us through your servant Moses. 8 “Please remember what you told your servant Moses: ‘If you are unfaithful to me, I will scatter you among the nations. 9 But if you return to me and obey my commands and live by them, then even if you are exiled to the ends of the earth,[a] I will bring you back to the place I have chosen for my name to be honored.’ 10 “The people you rescued by your great power and strong hand are your servants. 11 O Lord, please hear my prayer! Listen to the prayers of those of us who delight in honoring you. Please grant me success today by making the king favorable to me.[b] Put it into his heart to be kind to me.”
QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
Answer the following questions either with your group or using your journal. If you are studying this in a group, feel free to skip questions that are not relevant or add your own as they arise.
1. What part of Nehemiah’s story resonates most with where you are right now?
2. Where might God be inviting you to slow down and sit with Him instead of pushing forward quickly?
3. Nehemiah begins his prayer by focusing on who God is. How does worship shift your perspective in seasons of stress or transition?
4. What attitudes, habits, or patterns from last year cannot come with you into this new year?
5. Nehemiah anchors his prayer in Scripture. Which of God’s promises (presence, wisdom, mercy, power) do you need most this year?
6. Nehemiah’s burden was for his people and their future. How do you see God forming a similar burden in our church community?
PRAY
Be sure to leave time to pray together as a group. You may find it helpful to spend time praying for requests individually or it might be helpful to take down requests and send them out so the group can be praying through the week, or both.
Today’s Bible Story: Nehemiah • Nehemiah 1–4, 6:1-15
Today’s Bottom Line: God can help you do big things.
Today’s Memory Verse: “God was kind to me and helped me.” Nehemiah 2:8 (NIrV)
What You Need:
Mini marshmallows
Toothpicks
(If you don’t have marshmallows and toothpicks you can substitute legos)
What You Do:
Gather around the dining table or another flat surface
Prepare a cup of mini marshmallows and tooth picks
Explore Together:
Talk Together:
We can do big things with Him.
What You Say:
Amazing building skills! Nehemiah wasn’t a builder, and he lived nearly hundreds and hundreds of miles from his homeland. But God gave him a picture in his heart of what to do, and he trusted God to give him everything he needed to take action on it! He spent time pouring his heart out to God, made a plan, and God provided him with all the understanding and resources he needed to do this epic job.
The whole task of rebuilding the wall was something Nehemiah did with God. Before Nehemiah went to the king to ask for building supplies, he prayed and asked his friend, God, to help. Whenever Nehemiah needed help throughout rebuilding the walls—and it was often, because it was a big job—he prayed. He asked God for what he needed, and God gave it to him.
Nehemiah knew it was God who was helping him. In Nehemiah 2:8 (NIrV) he said: God was kind to me and helped me. The two of them did the big task of rebuilding the walls together. You might not be building a wall around a city, but you do face big things too. God might want you to help a younger kid, or start something new like a club that helps others feel seen and loved. Or God might want you to use your creativity (like your ideas, or your art) to tell His story in a way only you can!
When we face big things like this, the same God who went with Nehemiah through every step goes with us. We can trust God to give us the confidence and everything we need—we just have to talk to Him and ask Him for it! So face every big thing in your life together with God. Tell Him how you feel and ask Him to give you courage, understanding, patience, endurance, physical supplies—everything you need at every step—for what needs to be done. God wants you to build everything in your life with Him. God can help you do big things!
Close in Prayer:
God, thank You for being good and powerful! You were with Nehemiah, and we are so thankful You are with us too! You’ve made each of us SO uniquely, and we are so grateful. We want to live for You, God, so help us to do the big things You call us to do. YOU are strong when we feel weak, You are wise when we feel unsure, so remind us of those truths when we don’t feel confident. Help us to trust You and take the next brave step You ask us to do. We love You, and we pray these things in Jesus’ name. Amen!
Every week at church, we talk about God's call for us to give back to others out of the abundance He has given us. Pull out your calendar and find a day or two in the next month when you can practice living out the abundance of God through giving back to your community. Below are links to several ministries with volunteer opportunities.
Full Circle Meaningful Marketplace
The Friends Orange Food Pantry
You can also brainstorm some ideas as a family/life group for ways to serve. For example, maybe you have an elderly neighbor who needs help with housework, or perhaps you can go through your closets and find clothing to give to Full Circle Marketplace. There are so many ways we can help others in need as we start this new year together.
