how do you make sure the people build the very best wall possible? #bible #storytelling #leadership

2 Mar 2023 · 1 min

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In this sermon‑style excerpt, the speaker recounts the biblical account of Nehemiah’s reconstruction of Jerusalem’s wall. Nehemiah first asks each resident to choose a city home near the wall, ensuring that everyone has a personal stake in the fortifications. He then assigns each person the task of building the section of wall directly in front of their own house. The speaker explains that this approach guarantees that each segment is built with care—no one would want a weak spot that could expose their own home to attack. By aligning personal responsibility with collective security, the wall is completed uniformly and efficiently, finishing the entire circuit in just 52 days. The narrative is used to illustrate leadership principles: give people ownership of the work that directly affects them, thereby motivating high‑quality results and fostering rapid, coordinated achievement.

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Interesting. Nehemiah said, "Before we build the wall, I want you," said to each person, "I want you to go in the city and choose where your city home is going to be. You've already got your country home where your farm is. Where's your city home going to be?" And everyone wants a home near a gate, near the wall, and so they all went and chose their homes, and pretty soon all the city homes that were facing the wall-to-be were taken. And Nehemiah said, "Okay, now that you've chosen your home, I'd like you to build the part of the wall in front of your house. Very smart, because guess what's gonna happen if you say, "Ah, wall shmall, I don't really wanna build a wall, I'll just let other people build it." Well, the wall would get built all the way around and there'd be this hole right in front of your house. When the enemy comes and decides to break into Jerusalem, where are they gonna go? Through the hole. What house are they gonna attack first? Your house. And so everyone built their house as good as they, I mean, their part of the wall as good as they could, as thick as they were supposed to, as tall as they were supposed to, mixed it and matched it with the wall next to it so that it was one consistent wall, and in just 52 days they'd circumnavigated Jerusalem. And the wall was—