I’ve asked you in recent weeks to think about what’s broken in your sphere of influence. It could be a relationship with a spouse, a parent, a child, a friend. It could be that something is broken in your career or ministry. Identifying the broken places helps us see what job God wants us to do for Him. Anyone can just go through the motions in life. But God has called us to be builders.
There are three kinds of people in the world:
· People who make things happen!
· People who watch what’s happening, and
· People who wonder what happened.
I’m sure you want to make things happen – to be a builder. You probably won’t be able to fix things all by yourself. If you are going to make things happen, you will need help!
I love finding quotes that keep me focused and fired up. Someone said that seven powerful words are: “I have a problem. Will you help?” Someone else said that you spell team “T E A M – Together Everyone Achieves More.” Another quote: “None of us is as strong as all of us.” One more: “A star can win any game. A team can win every game.”
Do you know how to put together a team to help you rebuild what is broken?
Building a dream team
Series: Here’s Hope: Rebuilding a Broken World
Text: Nehemiah 2:9-20
I want to ask you to ask God to give you one thing this week that you can apply in your life that will make a big difference in that broken area He’s called you to rebuild.
Let’s review. Nehemiah had heard from his brother that Jerusalem, his ancestral home, was in ruins. With its walls down, Jerusalem had no defense against invaders. It was no place to make a home. Many of the citizens had moved out. Temple worship could not be maintained. Morale had sunk to rock bottom. Nehemiah was deeply disturbed – he wept, fasted, and prayed for 4 months. God spoke to his heart. “You go and meet the need.” Problem is that he is cupbearer to the King of Persia, Artaxerses. He kept praying passionately and serving faithfully until one day, the king asked him why he was sad. Nehemiah boldly asked for a new job. His praying paid off. God caused the King to send Nehemiah to oversee the building project, to give him letters of safe passage, to finance the project, and to appoint him as governor.
To build a dream team…
1. Rest and refocus.
9 Then I came to the governors of the provinces beyond the River and gave them the king’s letters. Now the king had sent with me officers of the army and horsemen.
10 When Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official heard about it, it was very displeasing to them that someone had come to seek the welfare of the sons of Israel.
Even before he arrived, the word was out that he was coming. Israel’s enemies were definitely not happy…
11 So I came to Jerusalem and was there three days.
Now, we don’t know for sure what he did in those three days. But we do know about the pattern of Nehemiah’s life from the rest of the book. Nehemiah’s rule of action seems to have been: first pray, then act, then pray, then act, then pray again. It’s a safe bet to say that he spent the time resting from the 2 month 1,000 mile trip and that he prayed.
Abraham Lincoln said on one occasion: “I have been driven many times to my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of those about me seemed insufficient…”
“Charles Swindoll has it right, I think, when he refers to Nehemiah as ‘A Leader—From the Knees Up!”
To build a dream team, rest and refocus after some hard work.
2. Investigate before you initiate.
Before Nehemiah began, he was determined to know the worst. Sometimes, we don’t do a very good job or rebuilding or getting the right kind of help because we put on the rose colored glasses and don’t want to see how bad things really are in the marriage or in the family or with the business or in the ministry.
Not Nehemiah. He investigated the situation. He wanted to know exactly what he was up against.
We can see two things he did to investigate.
Spend some time…
… in solitude. vv. 12-15
12 And I arose in the night, I and a few men with me. I did not tell anyone what my God was putting into my mind to do for Jerusalem and there was no animal with me except the animal on which I was riding.
13 So I went out at night by the Valley Gate in the direction of the Dragon’s Well and on to the Refuse Gate, inspecting the walls of Jerusalem which were broken down and its gates which were consumed by fire.
14 Then I passed on to the Fountain Gate and the King’s Pool, but there was no place for my mount to pass.
15 So I went up at night by the ravine and inspected the wall. Then I entered the Valley Gate again and returned.
The first need is to get clear in one’s mind what exactly the task is, what are its size and scope, what are its parameters and limits. Then your goals—long-term, mid-term, and short-term—will be clearly set and you will know just what you are aiming at: what you are doing, where you are going, and what will be involved in getting there.
To investigate, spend some time in solitude and
… in silence. vv.12b, 16b
16 The officials did not know where I had gone or what I had done; nor had I as yet told the Jews, the priests, the nobles, the officials or the rest who did the work.
While others slept, Nehemiah was wide-awake, burdened, conscious of desperate need and shame and ruin all around him. He diagnosed the situation, surveyed the ruined walls, and thought about the magnitude of the task to which God had called him.
Do your walking before you do your talking. Take inventory of the situation. Do some fact-finding. Don’t let yourself be driven by the emotion of the moment. You’re excited about your vision? Great. But keep a level head.
When God lays something on your heart, don’t tell anyone at first. They won’t be nearly as excited as you and their lack of passion might even shut you down before you get started. Sharing a vision prematurely won’t get you a warm reception.
Do your background work before going public. Do some fact-finding. Do our homework. Vision doesn’t always require immediate action. The walls weren’t broken in a day. They won’t be rebuilt in a day. Do some in-depth investigation first.
Nehemiah wanted to know what he was up against. He wanted to know the magnitude of the project. Share your vision and people are going to want to know “How you gonna do that?” You better know what the problems really are so you can seek to answer that question.
It’s important to know everything that can be known before moving forward. Don’t minimize how bad things are.
When I came here to start CVCC, I called and old friend from my college days at Vanderbilt who was working in Cleveland with the pro teams. 16 years ago, Tom Petersburg said, “There are only about 6 churches in the city that I would consider on the cutting edge for God – that I would really take my family to. Most pastors are defeated, depressed, and discouraged.” I swallowed hard and thought about the fact that 10 years earlier, someone tried to start a church in the area that lasted five years and then folded. This is a tough ministry area. But I needed to know that up front. When the going was hard during those early years, I needed to be able to tell myself, “I knew what I was getting into here. I knew it would be hard. But God called me. This is going to happen.”
Before you can cast your vision to anyone else, you have to have a firm grip on the current reality. You need to know what you are up against and what you are leading other people up against. You need to know all you can know about the environment that you are expecting other people to follow you into.
I see three phrases in these verses that grab my attention: In the night… at night…at night…
Have you ever lost one hour of sleep over the tragic spiritual dearth of your church and your city? Has it ever kept you awake? And have you cried, “O God, what can I do about this thing?” Think of the coldness of our prayers. Think of the routine and a lack of passion in our service to God.
Leaders are often awake when others are asleep, and working when others are resting.
Leaders must not live in a dream world. They must face facts honestly and accept the bad news as well as the good news. Nehemiah made a careful, conscious, probing examination of the wall for one reason: As leader, it was his job to be aware of the details and to develop a plan of action. But there is a vast difference between being aware of the details and being lost in those details.
To build a dream team, investigate before you initiate.
3. Motivate people to cooperate.
Morale was at an all-time low. Discouragement permeated the ranks of Israel.
His greatest challenge was to convince the people to tackle this project. It’s one thing to get excited about a difficult challenge when things are going well; it’s another thing to get excited when you’re discouraged and ready to give up.
First, they’d be skeptical. Who is this guy? Where did he come from? Who does he think he is? And rebuild the walls! Doesn’t he understand what we’re facing? He’s asking us to do the impossible!
What did Nehemiah say that got their cooperation, earned their respect and sustained them throughout? How did he say it? Why was it effective?
To motivate people to help…
1. … the problem must be plainly defined. v. 17a
17 Then I said to them, "You see the bad situation we are in, that Jerusalem is desolate and its gates burned by fire.
The fact that the city which had once been the center of God’s dealings with His people lay in ruins was not merely a reproach to them, it was a reproach to the honor and to the name of their God. That was to be the inspiration and the power behind all this work of revival. It was not simply a disgrace to them, it was a shame to Him.
We who call ourselves Christians need to know that a broken-down marriage, a broken-down family life, a broken-down business or ministry is not only a reproach to ourselves, but to God! That’s the main problem. That’s what people need to see.
2. … the solution must be simply stated. v. 17b
Come, let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem so that we will no longer be a reproach."
The job a great team builder and motivator is to take a complex problem and boil it down to a simple and easily understood solution.
3. … the work must be evenly shared. (See chapter 3)
… the bad situation we are in… Come, let us rebuild… so that we will no longer be a reproach." Then they said, "Let us arise and build."
One lesson from a quick glance at the third chapter of Nehemiah is that our lives are to be marked not only by spirituality but by efficiency. Nehemiah put the people to work with a well-thought out strategy. Nehemiah divided the work among forty-two groups; he did not believe in a one-man ministry!
It is interesting to note that Nehemiah set each group to work on that part of the wall which was nearest to where that group member lived. Many were assigned to rebuild portions of the wall in front of or directly adjacent to their houses. No time would be lost in going back and forth or in going home for lunch.
The roster of builders in Chapter 3 shows the work delegated to forty separate groups. All kinds of people pitched in: priests, Levites, temple servants, goldsmiths, merchants, officials, private individuals, women , and men from Jericho, Tekoa, Gibeon, Mizpah, and other towns in Jerusalem’s hinterland.
Someone said that in doing God’s work God’s way, organizing and agonizing must go together. We must maintain a passion for both. For some of us organizing crowds out agonizing. For others, agonizing crowds out organizing. We need both!
But what especially strikes me as important here are the number of references to “us” and “we.” Nehemiah does not play the visiting official from Susa, saying, “You people are in a mess, and I have come to help you.” Rather he says, “You see the bad situation we are in.” He is one of them.”
Imagine the kind of response he would have received if he had said, “You folks have gotten yourselves into a bad mess. You know hat you need to do? You need to rebuild that wall. If you need me, I’ll be in my office. After all, I wasn’t part of the problem. You people will have to get with it and do the work!?
4. … the Lord must be clearly seen. v. 18
18 I told them how the hand of my God had been favorable to me and also about the king’s words which he had spoken to me. Then they said, "Let us arise and build." So they put their hands to the good work.
They saw God’s hand at work. They knew Nehemiah had to be telling the truth. What other explanation would there be for his presence in Jerusalem? Furthermore, he had evidence—official letters signed by the king himself. And somewhere a group of military men were stationed—the king’s horsemen who had escorted him all the way to Jerusalem.
Words are OK but unconvincing. Nehemiah told of the risks he took: how he put his job at risk to follow God’s prompting, how one day the king started the conversation, and how he got the king’s understanding, permission and help.
Winston Churchill’s first speech as Prime Minister in World War II was designed to build a team. “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat…What is our aim? I can answer in one word: Victory—victory at all costs, victory in spite of all terror, victory however long and hard the road may be…” And later, when invasion by the Germans seemed certain: “We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be; we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing-grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender…”
Nehemiah’s confidence was infectious, the crowd caught the vision, and hope suddenly soared. Negative-thinkers turned positive. Despair turned to hope. They believed Nehemiah and trusted him. Vision confirmed. All systems go. This is a God thing!
To build a dream team, motivate people to cooperate.
4. Learn how to discourage the discouragers.
19 But when Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official, and Geshem the Arab heard it, they mocked us and despised us and said, "What is this thing you are doing? Are you rebelling against the king?"
They tried to use outdated information to achieve their own selfish goals.
20 So I answered them and said to them, "The God of heaven will give us success; therefore we His servants will arise and build, but you have no portion, right or memorial in Jerusalem."
Nehemiah was not intimidated…He faced their verbal abuse with bold words of his own.
Even though Nehemiah knew he wasn’t welcome, he remained undaunted…he knew he was about to tackle a gigantic project that others before him—for almost 150 years—had been unable to complete.
Three things to say to stay motivated:
We can count on God! v. 20a
The God of heaven will give us success…
The strength of our resolve begins with our relationship with God. It comes naturally to people who respect spiritual guidance, seek divine intervention and believe with childlike faith.
God can count on us! v. 20b
… therefore we His servants will arise and build…
The people who showed up were rulers and citizens, sons and daughters, and priests and merchants. They stuck together side-by-side, scraped what they have, and seized control of the project themselves.
The children of Israel were “servants” of God. Their dependence was not primarily on their human abilities, their human resources, or their personal genius. Their hope was in the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
You can take a hike! v. 20c
… but you have no portion, right or memorial in Jerusalem.
Part of the unwritten job requirement for every leader is the ability to handle criticism. That’s part of the leadership package. If you never get criticized, chances are you aren’t getting anything done.
If your critics listen to God’s voice, you had better listen to them. But if they are marching to a different drumbeat, use the Nehemiah technique.
To build a dream team, learn how to discourage the discouragers.
What is the one thing that you will take away from this great man’s example that will make the biggest difference in your life as you rebuild?
