Do It with Passion – 11 January 2010

This week we shall be looking at some lessons in leadership from Nehemiah – we are all involved in leadership of one kind or another if you define “leadership” as “influencing others”, and the principles that we can learn from Nehemiah can be applied to everybody in all their spheres of leadership including our world of work..

Do read Nehemiah Chapter 1 which gives some background.  The Jews have been exiled and Nehemiah is in an important position in exile – cupbearer to the King and he hears of the situation back home in Jerusalem.

Jerusalem lies in ruins, at least the walls - and this is where Nehemiah comes into the picture.  Through this book we read how he rallied and motivated and organised the people and in 52 days they were able to wash off their trowels, stow their gear and walk away from a newly finished wall with its gates set in the wall.  What are the principles we can learn about leadership from that amazing feat?

First we discover that Nehemiah had passion and I believe it is essential for leaders to be passionate about the things or the people that they are leading.  We cannot lead without a passion.  This is why Nehemiah, when he discovered what was happening in Jerusalem, wept.  Verse 4 tells us “When I heard these things I sat down and wept.  For some days I mourned and fasted and prayed before the God of Heaven” - this was something that he felt and cared deeply about. 

He was willing to forego food for days because of the passion that he felt for the state of Jerusalem.  Nehemiah could hardly sleep at night for working through the problem, working through the situation and as he was working through that situation he could actually see himself solving the problem.  He knew that he had what it took and he started working out what he could do about it.  He had a passion about the situation in Jerusalem and he wanted to see what he could do to get there. 

Nehemiah had to approach the King; he had to get approval from the King to let him go to Jerusalem.  He was an important official in the Courts, and so he went with his passion before the King he shared his concerns for his people, and the King seeing his passion, seeing his care allowed him to return to Jerusalem to set about the work that he wanted to do.

If we are to lead people we need to have passion.  If we are to be a leader in our sphere of activity we need to be passionate about that it. 

Father give us passion for the things you call us to do today.