Written by Caroline Garner
Rebuilding an entire city’s wall is a big task. One person’s vision to see a changed city can be
overwhelming to begin working on. How do you rebuild an entire city’s wall? Together! How
did Jerusalem’s wall get rebuilt? Everyone worked on their part in front of their homes.
There is so much need around us. How do we conquer it all? There are so many homes, families,
people, who are in need physically and spiritually. Where do we start? Nehemiah didn’t let the
extensive amount of work and the large mission ahead of him slow him down or scare him. He
prayed, he took what God put in his heart to do (2:12), he put aside doubt (2:19-20), and he
brought the body together. He knew it wasn’t going to happen on his own. That is too much of a
burden for one person to carry. But God gave us the body of Christ and empowers us to
accomplish what seems too big, too hard, too impossible through His people and His provisions.
There is a lot of need in our community and it can be hard to know where to start. It can be hard
to imagine how it will all be resolved and how all the needs will be met. It can be hard to see
how we can begin to rebuild in all of the rubble physically, emotionally, spiritually, and
relationally. But we, as brothers and sisters in Christ, are a team. With Christ alive in us through
the work of the Holy Spirit leading the way and guiding us in the how, we each start with our
part. We start with the first rock, the first shovel full of dirt, the first brick. We start in unity with
our neighbors and as we work hard in the Lord and persevere through the toughest parts,
sometimes waiting a while until we see the fruits, we begin to change. We begin to rebuild. God
establishes his workers. God equips us as his workers and provides us with what we need to do
our parts of the rebuilding.
As we come together as one, united under Christ, functioning as the body, we can begin meeting
the needs, building the relationships, and seeing God’s glory shine in the impacts that are made
in people’s lives. It takes all of us. In chapter 3, Nehemiah talks about all of the people who came
together to build sections and gates in the wall. There were goldsmiths, perfume-makers, district
rulers, priests, dads, daughters all alongside each other. Their profession or their age didn’t
matter. They got out there and made an impact for the glory of the Lord. And that’s what serving
here in our community is like too. It doesn’t matter what your profession is, where you live, how
old you are, where you came from, or how you got here. God calls us to unite as a body and
family to impact the surrounding community for the glory of the Lord. God establishes his
builders of his wall in Jerusalem and he will establish them here in Lee County.
As we approach My Jerusalem, we are praying for the builders that will partner in serving the
community. We are praying for unity in the body. We are praying God be glorified by the works
of our hands and the relationships that have been and will continue to be built in His name.
