More good stuff ....

Nehemiah kept the call of God to himself until he knew it was God. This might sound strange after all he had gone through to get to this place of assessment. When God reveals a great assignment a leader is well served to keep the call between himself and God until it is oblivious that it is God not the leader’s personal ambition. We must remember that God will not share His glory. The rebuilding of the walls was about God and His restoration of His people. During my recent decision to follow the call of God in my life I found that I must keep the call secret until I knew it was God and not me. Even when I knew it was God’s call I still dealt with a haunting insecurity. I am sure Nehemiah faced such a daunting task that he kept it to himself until he knew that he knew that it was God. This truth took the pressure off Nehemiah. If it is God’s doing then God is the one on the “hook” not the leader. As a leader I have learned to trust God and not me. Nehemiah kept the call secret and let God take the pressure.

Nehemiah found things were worst than thought. Most leaders underestimate the challenges of renewal. It is harder and will take longer than you thought. The biggest barrier is emotional. What I mean by emotional is that the work on the heart of the leader is much more demanding than the physical labor of rebuilding the wall. A task the size of Nehemiah’s might lead a leader to give up. Because Nehemiah made sure it was God’s doing and not his he refused to be overwhelmed. In starting this new church I get overwhelmed by the size and pace of the task. Even though I have done this before and have led others to plant churches I had forgotten the emotional uncertainty and spiritual intensity of this task. As I prayed over the city I am called to reach and began to build the infrastructure needed for the church I get crazy with the scope and difficulty of the task. Nehemiah was too far into it to give up thus forged ahead and found God’s amazing provision. God’s will is always revealed in the hindsight of obedience.