House of the Heroes

I haven’t yet made it to Cooperstown, but one day I hope to visit baseball’s Hall of Fame and honor the game’s greatest players.  (I’m just waiting until Dale Murphy is inducted!)   There in the hallowed hallways of America’s Pastime, fans can find Lou Gehrig’s locker, Curt Schilling’s blood-stained sock, and Babe Ruth’s first Yankees road jersey.  The motto of the museum is ”Preserving History, Honoring Excellence, Connecting Generations,” and over 15 million visitors have been amazed and inspired by the artifacts, exhibits, and accomplishments of  baseball’s greats throughout the years.

Whether in athletics, academics, the arts, the military, or the making of a nation, heroes are important, and monuments to help us remember what they’ve done certainly have their place—even in war-torn Jerusalem.  As Nehemiah and company repaired the city’s wall, we find that the “ruler of a half-district of Beth Zur, made repairs up to a point opposite the tomb of David, as far as the artificial pool and the House of the Heroes”(Neh 3:16). The House of the Heroes.  How cool is that??

We’re not told who was honored there, but surely the museum housed a replica of Abraham’s altar where he had raised the knife to sacrifice his son, Isaac, a painting of Joseph running from the exciting and alluring temptation of Potiphar’s wife, a life-size statue of Moses holding the 10 Commandments, (you could probably purchase fake Moses staffs  in the souvenir shop), a short documentary of Joshua’s seven-day march around Jericho,  and reproductions of Gideon’s fleece, Samson’s hair, and the tent peg Jael drove through Sisera’s temple as rested in her tent.  Perhaps one plaque noted Hannah’s commitment to give God her only son, and another detailed his decades of service to God and country.  Without doubt, David’s sling shot from his battle with Goliath was on display, likely right beside the sword and bow given to him by his loyal friend Jonathan.  An entire wall would have been dedicated to the astounding exploits of David’s Mighty Men, and framed blueprints for God’s temple segued to the treasures of Solomon’s kingdom.  Hopefully, the righteous reigns and revivals of Jehoshaphat, Hezekiah, and Josiah were celebrated, and the courage of Joash’s aunt, Jehosheba, to rescue him from his murderous grandmother was remembered.  Ah, what a museum it must have been!  The House of the Heroes.

Physically and spiritually, we need those places and those people that help us preserve history, honor excellence, and connect generations.  Though no one is perfect, we need heroes who have gone before us—walking in faith, trusting even in fear, and receiving grace in failure.  We should honor men like William Tyndale, who gave his life to get God’s Word written in English, and Martin Luther, whose belief in faith alone led to spiritual reformation and revolution.  We should celebrate the courage and commitment of missionaries like Hudson Taylor, Adoniram Judson, and David Livingston.  And we should acclaim the sacrificial lives and constant prayers of parents, grandparents, pastors, and friends who have cheered us on, prayed us through, and given us examples to follow.

Take some time to walk the halls of your own House of Heroes.  Be amazed and inspired at the grace of God and the goodness of God.  And live so others can look up to you.

 

 

 

Home Improvement

“Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front of their house; and next to them, Azariah made repairs beside his house.”  Nehemiah 3:23

When the residents of Jerusalem decided to get to work, some headed across town to help while those who lived near the wall simply stepped out the front door.  “Benjamin and Hasshub made repairs in front of their house; and next to them, Azariah made repairs beside his house…Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house.  Next to them, Zadok made repairs opposite his house”(Neh 3:23,29). 

All of the wall had fallen, and progress could be made at any point, but the people realized that it didn’t make much sense to head down the street when you stumble over rubble in your own driveway, so they began rebuilding at home.  Sometimes that’s the hardest place to start.

If we’re honest, we often find ourselves more patient with an employee or kinder to the neighbor’s kids than to those who share the same address.  Under our roofs, the elements of proximity, personalities, and permanence synthesize with schedules and stresses in a blend both delightful and difficult.  Sometimes it’s simpler and more immediately satisfying to spend our energy and efforts in work projects or personal recreation, but while our influence and involvement in civic, community, and even church activities are important, if God has given us a family, we must focus on them first to build a legacy that will last.

Please don’t think I’m preaching from a pedestal of perfection.  I’ve already blown it several times today and have had to apologize profusely for my attitude and actions.  It’s tough to make the right choices with our time and in our tone, to be selfless and self-controlled, to love well and listen well, to guide and to give with wisdom and grace, but when we are willing for our minds and our hearts to stay at home, focused on God and those He has given us to love and live with, our relationships are built stronger and sweeter and our families overflow with God’s goodness and grace.

Don’t head across town when you need to stay home.

The ones you live with need you most and love you best.

Get busy building.

 

God's Construction Site

“Eliashib the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate.”  Nehemiah 3:1   

Sometimes it’s just time to get to work, and the flurry of activity at Jerusalem’s wall finds several things worth noting.  To start with, the spiritual leaders stepped up first.  “Eliashib the high priest and his fellow priests went to work and rebuilt the Sheep Gate”(Neh 3:1).   I vividly remember when the staff at my college church pledged a double tithe toward the new sanctuary, when the man I didn’t recognize scraping sodden ceiling tiles off school desks after a storm turned out to be the new Methodist preacher, when the guy I saw down aisle three at the grocery wearing jeans and a sweaty t-shirt was my senior pastor grabbing lunch during a home ministry remodel, and when the wizard with the chainsaw during the hurricane relief was an out-of state pastor and friend who had come down quickly and brought a crew.  When God’s leaders are willing to get a little dirty—emotionally, physically, and financially—God’s people are much more willing to follow.  Thank you, guys.

But the spiritual leaders weren’t the only ones stepping up and stacking stones, the social leaders worked as well. Three men who ruled different local districts and five who ruled half-districts rebuilt and repaired parts of the wall. Those in positions of authority didn’t just stand around giving instructions; they got involved heartily and heavily.  The rotten apples in the bunch were the leaders from Tekoa.  “The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work”(Neh 3:5).  In short, they thought they were too good for God’s work, and though those haughty nobles would not appreciate such phrasing about their lack of participation, the picture of Jesus folding a filthy towel after washing His disciples’ feet leaves no other option.

It’s important to point out that none of the laborers working on Jerusalem’s wall were trained construction workers or professional contractors.  On the contrary, their occupations were anything but.  They were priests, Levites, perfume makers, merchants, goldsmiths, guards, and mayors—all led by a wine taster.  And since a project of such magnitude demanded all hands on deck, even those normally not allowed got involved.  “Shallum, ruler of a half-district of Jerusalem, repaired the next section with the help of his daughters”(Neh 3:12).  You go, girls!! 

The great thing about God’s work is that though it’s often dirty, it’s usually not too difficult.  We must simply be willing to bend down, reach into the rubble, pick up a rock—or a life, knock off the dirt, and set it back in place.  Yes, knuckles will get scraped, nails will break, and grime will be ground into your skin and your soul, but little is more lovely on heaven or earth than God’s people of various sizes, shapes, talents, treasures, and training coming together around God’s work for God’s glory.  “In Christ the whole building is joined together and rises to become a holy temple in the Lord.  And in him you too are being built together to become a dwelling in which God lives by his Spirit”(Eph 2:21-22).

God’s work awaits. 

Get busy building!

 

Keep Building

“They mocked and ridiculed us.  ‘What is this you are doing?’ they asked.”  Nehemiah 2:19

It’s sad but true that sometimes when we do something good someone gets mad.  Sad but not surprising.  The devil has always been against the divine, and unfortunately he doesn’t have to look far to find those willing to raise a ruckus against what’s right.

Often the ones opposed are closely involved, but occasionally they’re just close-by busybodies like the men who rose up against the rebuilding of Jerusalem’s wall.  “Sanballat the Horonite and Tobiah the Ammonite official…were very much disturbed that someone had come to promote the welfare of the Israelites”(Neh 2:10).

Their reasons for opposition were selfish and sinful. They wanted the Jews to stay down and defenseless, and they wanted to be the big boys on the block. The arrival of Nehemiah threatened their façade of power and authority, so they tried to tear down his work with their words.  “They mocked and ridiculed us.  ‘What is this you are doing?’ they asked”(Neh 2:19).  They made fun of and tried to make a fool of Nehemiah and his plan, and when that didn’t work, they questioned his motives by insinuating he was leading a rebellion.

Often silence is the best response to ridicule (“When they hurled insults at him, he did not retaliate; when he suffered, he made no threats” 1 Peter 2:23), but if you must answer back, point up.  “I answered them by saying, ‘The God of heaven will give us success”(Neh 2:20). When we do what we do not for earth’s dust but heaven’s delight we can handle opposition with optimism and without discouragement.  Nehemiah informed the men that this wall was God’s work, that he and those with him were God’s workers (“We his servants will start rebuilding.” Neh 2:20), and that the ones against it had no business even being part of the conversation (“But as for you, you have no share in Jerusalem or any claim or historic right to it.” Neh 2:20).

Those against the good will always be around, but don’t let them get you down.

Opposition is just another opportunity for God to show His glory.

Keep building.

The Big Job

“After staying there three days, I set out during the night with a few men.” Nehemiah 2:12

Sometimes the day looms large, and the task at hand is overwhelming—even when you know the mandate is divine.  So where do you start and what do you do?

Begin by showing up. You can’t do much unless you’re there, so follow Nehemiah’s example—hop on your horse and trot to town. 

When you arrive, assess the situation.  Ignorance might be bliss, but in difficult times, it’s not best. You need to know what you’re dealing with so you can know what needs to be done.  “I went to Jerusalem, and after staying there three days, I set out during the night with a few men”(Neh 2:12).  Nehemiah’s night time ride revealed lots of rubble in lots of places.  The “walls of Jerusalem, which had been broken down, and its gates, which had been destroyed by fire” lay in piles of ruins which were often impassable(Neh. 2:13-14). The scope of damage was extensive, but because Nehemiah didn’t want to stay in the dark, he set out in the dark.

Once you know how much work awaits, speak up, but keep quiet until you’re quite sure.  Nehemiah was a man with a mission, but he didn’t announce his intentions upon arrival.  “I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem…The officials did not know where I had gone or what I was doing, because as yet I had said nothing ”(Neh. 2:11-12).

By not delivering speeches until the damage survey was done, Nehemiah could offer informed leadership to the “priests, nobles, officials, and any others who would be doing the work”(Neh 2:16), and he could urge them to step in with him in confidence. “Then I said to them, ‘You see the trouble we are in…Come, let us rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, and we will no longer be in disgrace”(Neh 2:17).  He told them “about the gracious hand of my God upon me and what the king had said to me”(Neh. 2:19), and they were eager to begin.

When the task at hand is tough and tall, show up.  Assess the situation.  Keep quiet until you’re quite sure.  Then step in with confidence.

With the gracious hand of your God upon you, great works will be done through you.

A Heavy Heart

“I had not told anyone what my God had put in my heart to do for Jerusalem.”  Nehemiah 2:12

Growing up around church I often heard the phrase, “The Lord put this on my heart.”  To my literal seven year old mind, having something laid on your heart would be heavy to bear and make it hard to breathe, so why would God want to do a thing like that?  Perhaps because God knows that sometimes the only way to get us going is to get us gasping.

The news of Jerusalem’s devastation was not merely information that Nehemiah could pass along to others.  The moment he heard, his heart was heavy, and he knew God wanted him to lend a hand—or two—to the situation.

Wall-building and wine tasting were not remotely on the same job skills spectrum, but since God had put this in his heart, Nehemiah traded the comfortable and the  known for the difficult and the uncertain—because he could not breathe easy until the walls were rebuilt. 

What has your God put on your heart?  A person?  A project?  A person who is a project?  Most likely, it won’t be comfortable.  Without doubt, it will require some effort. And almost certain, it will demand a sacrifice.   But when God puts something on your heart, it’s a blessing—not a burden.

Don’t keep gasping.  Get going.

And??

“And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests.” Nehemiah 2:9

Some people never seem satisfied.  Take the guy in the current Coke Zero commercial.  Each time he receives something, he wants more—and gets it by abundant use of the word “And??”  The plain ice cream of his childhood is quickly coated in sprinkles and crowned with a cherry. The straight skateboarding dog of his adolescence suddenly flips, twists, turns, and wins a national title.  As an adult, his new employer supplements a basic job opportunity with stock options, a cash bonus, a corner office, new car, boat, and mansion, and an attractive sales clerk adds a hot date to her compliment of his clothing.  Only the combination of great taste AND zero calories discovered in a can of a Coke Zero finally brings him satisfaction without his asking.

The clever ad is not reality.  Our mothers would have taken the cool cone and given us something warm had we smarted off like that in Baskin Robbins!  The boss would fire a guy on the spot for such selfish demands, and gorgeous women don’t throw themselves at average Joe’s wearing baggy jeans.  But there was a day, one day in the throne room of a Persian palace, when a real guy kept saying, “And??” and kept getting really good things.

“What do you want?” the king queried when Nehemiah told him of the trouble in Jerusalem.  “A leave of absence,” he replied. “If it pleases the king…let him sent me to the city in Judah where my fathers are buried so that I can rebuild it”(Neh. 2:5).  When Artaxerxes agreed, Nehemiah followed his answer with an “And?”  “May I have letters to the governors so that they will provide me safe conduct?”(Neh. 2:7).  But permission and protection weren’t enough.  Nehemiah also wanted provisions.  “And…timber to make beams for the gates of the citadel by the temple”(Neh. 2:8).  But he wasn’t done.  “And wood for the city wall?”  “And how about materials to build my house?”(Neh. 2:8a)   

“And because the gracious hand of my God was upon me, the king granted my requests”(Neh. 2:8b). And threw in even more. “The king also sent army officers and cavalry with me”(Neh. 2:9).

Nehemiah wasn’t greedy; he was doing God’s work, and “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s provision”(HudsonTaylor).

Even if you get it by asking “And??”

 

 

911 Prayer

“Then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king.” Nehemiah 2:5

Thankfully, I’ve had to make few 911 calls in my life, but when I did dial the emergency number, the conversations were short and to the point.  There was no time for anything else. 

Sometimes prayer is like that, and that’s ok.  Though extended times of talking to God about a troubling situation are necessary and beneficial, life often demands an immediate response, and our plea for divine aid must be brief.

“What is it you want?” the king of Persia asked a sad Nehemiah, who had just explained that his downcast face was due to his demolished city(Neh. 2:4).  Nehemiah didn’t have time to run to his room, fall on his knees, and spend hours with God deciding what to say.  He had to reply right then and right there.  So as he breathed in, he appealed to heaven, and as he breathed out, he answered on earth.  “Then I prayed to the God of heaven, and I answered the king”(Neh. 2:5).

911 prayers are an important part of life, and our ever-ready God delights in rushing to our rescue.  Nehemiah’s request for a royal leave of absence to rebuild Jerusalem was quickly granted, with the king only wanting to know when Nehemiah would return.  Our requests for calm hearts, strong spirits, the right words, or even piles of patience are met with the limitless supply of a gracious Heavenly Father.  He wants us to ask for His help—the long way and the short way.  Nehemiah had already spent three months grieving, praying, and fasting about this situation.  His extended time with God had so tuned his heart to God that when the circumstance became urgent, Nehemiah immediately turned God’s way for help.  When you’ve prayed long with concern, you can pray short with confidence.

Sometimes you only have time to say, “God help me!”

And He will.

A Job Well Done

“I was cupbearer to the king.”  Nehemiah 1:11

I do not know the occupations of all who will read this devotion, but I do know several and they are varied.  Some teach college.  Some teach kindergarten.  Some work at home.  Some at the office.  Some own a business.  Some feel owned by a business.  Some count money.  Some count birds (that would be my biologist husband.)  Some pastor.  Some own pastures.  Some care for bodies.  Some care for souls.  Some grow plants.  Some sell cars.  Some fix things.  Some farm.  Some change tires. Some change diapers.  But though we all do different things, each of us is busy accomplishing the tasks of today (and sometimes of yesterday, too!)

The job Nehemiah held isn’t in high demand right now, but qualities of his profession are often in short supply.  Nehemiah was cupbearer to the king of Persia, but he did more than carry the royal wine.  He tasted it first to make sure it was safe from the poison of a cruel enemy or a treacherous ally.  In short, before anything went into the king’s mouth, it went into Nehemiah’s first.

This job involved risk, trust, and loyalty.  Every single day, Nehemiah placed his life on the line to ensure that someone else stayed safe.  And every single day, because of Nehemiah’s proximity to the royal court, the king trusted him to keep quiet the nation’s secrets and quite likely asked for his advice.  Nehemiah’s competence and reliability had earned the favor of a powerful ruler.

Your paycheck might not come from a palace, but your work is more than just a job—it’s a divine adventure. Each encounter is an opportunity.  Each responsibility is a privilege.  Every spreadsheet, board meeting, test to grade, field to spray, or creature to mend is a gift God has handed you today to show His glory.  Work is not part of Eden’s curse.  (Adam was naming animals before Eve even arrived.)  We were created to be creative—to produce and construct, to take the stuff of this earth and transform it into something more beautiful or useful. Sometimes that’s people.  Sometimes it’s products.  But all is God’s and is to be through Him, in Him, and for Him.  Even tasting the wine of a king.

Whatever your something to do is, do it well and you’ll be doing God’s will.
Happy Labor Day!