“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)
One book, written about 425 BC, still stands as a classic work on effective leadership; yet it is strangely obscure and virtually unknown to people today. It was written by a man who was prominent in business and politics in the ancient Middle East. He not only possessed an exceptional personal philosophy of leadership, but he lived it out as well. In his lifetime, this gentleman rose from utter obscurity to national recognition. The book he penned bears his name: Nehemiah.
Believe it or not, what Nehemiah had to say concerning leadership speaks to the very same issues you and I face today. For example, from his book we learn:
- how to relate to a touchy boss;
- how to balance faith in God’s sovereignty and the need for personal planning;
- how to handle discouragement at the executive level;
- how to respond to unwarranted criticism.
In this biblical manual for leaders we find timeless and reliable guidelines that work. They enable us to know how to build quality characteristics in ourselves and others—the kind that are rarely seen today. These truths are not suddenly “dumped” on us, but rather handed to us—brick by brick, as it were—in the form of a narrative. The story begins with an unassuming servant and follows his personal journey to become the official governor of Israel during its reconstruction, which incidentally points us to our first lesson. Good leaders are made, not born; they are built, shaped, and tested by God—brick by brick—over time.
That’s the purpose of this ancient book: to equip you, to build you into the kind of leader God desires—a true leader. If you allow yourself to get caught up in the story, you will find something wonderful begin to happen. As you watch the plot develop, as you see Nehemiah’s character and his project built, shaped, and tested, you will find something in your hand that wasn’t there before: a brick, something with which to begin building your own character.
Whatever you do, don’t just stand there. Use it. Set it in place and continue reading. And before the end of the story, I think you will be amazed by how many bricks were passed from Nehemiah’s hands to yours.
When God puts His hand on a plain, ordinary person whom He has destined for leadership, that person is given mountain-matching abilities, whether he be a Roosevelt, a Lincoln, a Nehemiah—or a person like you or me. He motivates leaders to accomplish goals, to keep on working, to pass the bricks! Nehemiah, although an ordinary man underneath, emerges as one of the most significant leaders in history. He was highly motivated to do a job for God that involved many difficult circumstances.
