Wednesday May 4, 2011

Did you ever have a sibling who didn’t seem to have to do as much work as you did or got by with doing less than you had to do? Do you ever remember working on a group project in school and you seem to be the only one putting energy on the project? Have you ever experienced a work environment where not all the workers were pulling their weight? How about playing for a competitive team and finding that there were some on the team that were loafing off (now that is an ancient term) and others were busting their butts? Have you ever been in a situation where people feel entitled and want recognition, but don’t want to have to do any of the hard work? As I pondered these questions, I could easily put myself in the hard worker category, but I am sure that others may at times put me into the loafing off category. Don’t we all think that we are the right ones and everyone else is messing up.

I came across an interesting verse as I was reading Nehemiah this morning. Nehemiah had told the exiles why he came and they with one accord said “let’s arise and build.” He was masterful in having each family build the wall in front of his own house. If I am building the wall in front of someone’s house that I don’t know, I am less likely to do as good a job as when the wall I am building is right in front of my house. I sure don’t want the enemy coming and breaking down the wall in front of my house. There were also groups of families building certain sections of the wall. Then I read this passage, “The next section was repaired by the men of Tekoa, but their nobles would not put their shoulders to the work under their supervisors.” (Neh.3:5). The men of Tekoa were putting their backs to the work of repairing the wall, but the leaders of their clan would not work. It didn’t say they couldn’t work, but they wouldn’t work. The work did get done and the wall was finished, but not because of the nobles of Tekoa. They refused to work. They defied God’s call to rebuild the wall.

In life there will be people who when challenged to a task will not put their shoulders to the work no matter how convincing a leader is. In every group, there will be people you would bet your life on that they would help, but they don’t for whatever reason. That shouldn’t deter you from doing what God has called you to do.

On this journey there are going to be individuals you have been with for a long time that will drop out of the race because they decide that they don’t want to be a part of God’s call. Don’t let their choices influence yours.