Nehemiah: Passion & Compassion

Nehemiah is a beautiful portrait of what a fully surrendered man can do in the business world. Against unsurmountable odds, Nehemiah built the walls and fortified the city of Jerusalem in 52 days. An almost unbelievable task, that coupled with the fact that Nehemiah was a slave when the call to build the wall came. What was the driving force of the man? The passion and compassion God gave Nehemiah made him unstoppable. Let's dive into the man and see how these 2 attributes can improve our business ventures and projects.

Let's look at Nehemiah 1:1-11. "The words of Nehemiah the son of Hachaliah. And it came to pass in the month Chisleu, in the twentieth year, as I was in Shushan the palace, That Hanani, one of my brethren, came, he and certain men of Judah; and I asked them concerning the Jews that had escaped, which were left of the captivity, and concerning Jerusalem. And they said unto me, The remnant that are left of the captivity there in the province are in great affliction and reproach: the wall of Jerusalem also is broken down, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. And it came to pass, when I heard these words, that I sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven, And said, I beseech thee, O LORD God of heaven, the great and terrible God, that keepeth covenant and mercy for them that love him and observe his commandments: Let thine ear now be attentive, and thine eyes open, that thou mayest hear the prayer of thy servant, which I pray before thee now, day and night, for the children of Israel thy servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel, which we have sinned against thee: both I and my father's house have sinned. We have dealt very corruptly against thee, and have not kept the commandments, nor the statutes, nor the judgments, which thou commandedst thy servant Moses. Remember, I beseech thee, the word that thou commandedst thy servant Moses, saying, If ye transgress, I will scatter you abroad among the nations: But if ye turn unto me, and keep my commandments, and do them; though there were of you cast out unto the uttermost part of the heaven, yet will I gather them from thence, and will bring them unto the place that I have chosen to set my name there. Now these are thy servants and thy people, whom thou hast redeemed by thy great power, and by thy strong hand. O Lord, I beseech thee, let now thine ear be attentive to the prayer of thy servant, and to the prayer of thy servants, who desire to fear thy name: and prosper, I pray thee, thy servant this day, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man. For I was the king's cupbearer."

First and foremost, Let's look at the passion of the man. The word, "beseech" appears 3 times in the passage. The word means "to beg anxiously or fervently". When the need arose, Nehemiah begged with all his might for a solution to the problem of his people. Nehemiah wanted to be a solution. Now let's look at ourselves for a second. Do your work your job solely make the necessary means? Or, is there a fire within you to do what you do? I am not saying your career should be your top priority, but God did say " and whatsoever thy hands find to do, do it with all thine heart." Passion is the example of Christ. Not only did He taste death for what he believed, He lived it every day. The passion of the man for his people led to the compassion.

When Nehemiah hears about the state of his people in Jerusalem, we read that he "sat down and wept, and mourned certain days, and fasted, and prayed before the God of heaven..."The passion he had for the work that needed done and for his people. Manifested itself in compassion. Here is a man in the king's palace in an elevated position that hasn't forgotten the pain of bondage and ache of suffering. His compassion drives him to take a great risk and present the plight of his people to the king. This could have cost him his life. How far do you see the vision of the work you do. Do you see the sick person at the office who can't afford to go home and get well due to their circumstances? You clean for them. Do you see the child at home who misses a parent that is sick and hospitalized? You work for them. Can you imagine any of those people being your loved ones? You work for them. Passion says I will do whatever it takes to get the job done, while compassion says I will do it to help all those who can't and need someone to intercede and be there.

Nehemiah built a wall in 52 days to protect his people. What could you accomplish if passion and compassion drove you?