“Then said I unto them, You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lieth waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire; come, and let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach” (Nehemiah 2:17).
What a great life lesson for us rests in this brief statement of Nehemiah’s. Successful leadership and ministry are built on the servant identifying with the location situation. Nehemiah could have stayed hundreds of miles away as the cupbearer in Shushan the palace, but he didn’t. He spoke of the distress “we” are in. He fully identified as standing with the very needy situation. But it didn’t stop there. He wanted to become part of the solution, declaring “let us” build. As Christians, you and I are called to be salt and light, according to Matthew 5:13-16. While not lowering our standards and living sinfully, we have the great privilege to reaching out to people who are broken and who have made a mess of their lives. The Lord Jesus and the message of the gospel is what they desperately need. But they probably won’t hear this from a far away palace. To be part of restoring what is broken requires us to go to where “broken” exists. What a challenge for us today.
For today: Where will the Lord use you today? Be on the watch. He has a plan.