Spiritual Alignment
And they found written in the Law, which the Lord had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast of the seventh month, and that they should announce and proclaim in all their cities and in Jerusalem, saying, “Go out to the mountain, and bring olive branches, branches of oil trees, myrtle branches, palm branches, and branches of leafy trees, to make booths, as it is written.” Then the people went out and brought them and made themselves booths, each one on the roof of his house, or in their courtyards or the courts of the house of God, and in the open square of the Water Gate and in the open square of the Gate of Ephraim. So the whole assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and sat under the booths; for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day the children of Israel had not done so. And there was very great gladness. – Nehemiah 8:14-17
Another lesson every leader can learn from Nehemiah is the need for spiritual alignment or realignment. Nehemiah did not just take an initiative to convene a holy assembly to reconcile the people with God, he also took it a step further by helping the people to follow through the process of reconciliation.
Having had the scriptures read to them in the public, the people wanted to know more and kept coming back to the priest to know what God wanted them to do. That routine led them to realize that they were in the period of the feast of the seventh month which had specific rituals and practices from God as to how they should observe it. That realization did not just end there, however, it spurred them into action to do the needful. They all set out to gather the materials needed to make the booths to observe the feast of the seventh month and thereafter set to work to construct the booths so they could observe the feast as prescribed by God. The interesting thing is that this was last done hundreds of years before in the time of Joshua. But by leading them back to God in a holy assembly, Nehemiah was able to revive a long-forgotten custom which would further consolidate the standing of the nation and its people with God.
This is one of the benefits of a leader taking the initiative to foster a fellowship between God and the people. By convening a sacred assembly, Nehemiah did not just start a process of spiritual rebirth in the land but also led them to a discovery that helped them to be realigned to God. Being in alignment with God has many advantages, the immediate of them being indescribable joy as we can see in that passage of the Bible. “…and there was very great gladness.”
Other benefits include peace, safety, favor, and many other benevolences that only God can give. These are all desirables for both the leaders and the led, the system and everything it represents. The more reason it is important for every ruler to learn from the examples of Nehemiah and be conscientious in fostering a harmony between God and the people he is leading.
You Will Succeed in Jesus Name!
Also read:
- Nehemiah’s Leadership Playbook: Corporate Devotion
- God of the Beginning
- Each Gives What He Has
- Strange Death Stopped
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