Selflessness
Remember me, my God, for good, according to all that I have done for this people. – Nehemiah 5:19
The above was the prayer of Nehemiah, a leader of his people in his time. The question is how many leaders today can genuinely say this prayer to God, the Omniscient One who knows and sees everything, even those hidden from all eyes? How many people in positions of power can truthfully ask God to remember them for all they have done for the people they lead? How many leaders have the heart of a shepherd and truly cares for their people and diligently work, day and night, to improve their welfare and make life better for them?
But then, what did Nehemiah do for the people that made him say this very bold prayer that very few people in positions of power can say? Our meditation for the next few days shall be on some of the fundamentals that make a genuine and conscientious leader who put the people first. We will be consulting Nehemiah’s leadership playbook for this,
At some point in history Nehemiah became the leader in the land of Judah. It is important to note that he took on a very unpleasant job when he became the governor over a depleted city as most of the people, particularly the agile, strong and prime citizens, male and female, had been taken away captive by the Babylonians and turned to slaves in foreign lands. The only people who were left in the land were the old and feeble, those considered to be unproductive and who would give the slave masters more stress than gains. These were the people who were mostly occupying the land of Judah at the time Nehemiah visited the place and started his self-assigned mandate of rebuilding the walls of the city as well as the morale of its people.
No doubt Nehemiah knew he had his job cut out for him by going to do anything in that sort of place. Any leader would have preferred to lead and work with a vibrant and youthful population, but he travelled several thousand miles from Persia to Jerusalem when he decided to go and rebuild the walls of his ancestral home as well as bring hope and comfort to the residents. He also left the comfort of a palace where he was living plus the perks of a high-profile job he had at that time as the king’s cupbearer to go face the tough climate and uncertainties that he must be aware awaited him in Jerusalem. Nevertheless, he went all the same.
These are demonstrations of his selflessness. He was not thinking about himself, his own comfort or what he would make for himself in undertaking to go repair the walls of Jerusalem and improve outcomes for the residents of the land. If he had put himself or his personal comfort first, he would not have dared to embark on the mission he did. But his love for his ancestral land and its people was so strong that he was willing to risk it all, his life, his job, his health, his comfort and everything else to travel the distance to fulfill his mission.
Now how many leaders can genuinely do this without something in it for them? How many leaders have this kind of selflessness and driven by the good they can do to the people? Any leader who must say the Nehemiah kind of prayer must be like-minded.
To be continued…
You Will Succeed in Jesus Name!
Also read:
Discover more from Daily Dew Devotional
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
