Seven Traits of a Great Leader (1/2)

Nehemiah was an exceptional leader! My students are learning all about him on Wednesday nights as we look at the book of Nehemiah in a chapter-by chapter and verse-by-verse expository fashion. (By the way, if you want to be a part of this intense Bible study, you can find us in the youth suite upstairs from 6:30-7:30PM every Wednesday - The Village Baptist Church). We just finished studying the second half of Nehemiah chapter two last night. As I had been preparing for my lesson regarding this section, seven distinct leadership traits jumped right out at me. Listed below are these seven leadership traits that Nehemiah exhibited; they are traits that we all would do well to learn from and emulate.
1. Leaders take care of the small things! (Neh 2:11) - Notice that Nehemiah didn't begin casting his vision from the very moment he arrived in Jerusalem. He didn't immediately start pointing and barking orders to those who would ultimately help rebuild the city. Instead, when he reached Jerusalem, Nehemiah stayed there three days before making what we would consider a "big" move towards his ultimate mission. No doubt he was visiting with his family, forming necessary relationships with important people, and getting his feet on the ground before stepping out to take care of the "big" stuff. Moreover, notice that Nehemiah had already begun taking care of the smaller things even before he left for Jerusalem. He secured safe travel and building supplies from King Artaxerxes before his trip was even underway. Nehemiah, unlike many of us sometimes, must have surmised that "taking care of the little things" was a very needed and important step in the process of accomplishing some pretty big goals. Too often, we tend to want to overlook the small details and jump right into a ministry task head over heals, and then we learn what a terrible mistake we made later. Let's learn to be like Nehemiah and take care of the small things!
2. Leaders know who they can trust! (Neh 2:12) When Nehemiah set out to observe the destruction of the city, notice that he was accompanied by only a "few men." The text doesn't even tell us that any of these men were members of his own family. Apparently, Nehemiah understood that "trust" is of utmost importance, especially when you're about to lead a large group of people to do something incredibly huge and important in the eyes of God. Nehemiah didn't involve a lot of people (and maybe not his own family) in the earlier stages of his mission, and he knew that only a "few" trustworthy companions could know (and protect) the time-sensitive nitty-gritty details of his plan. More than that, the text seems to reveal that Nehemiah had even held-back much of the details from even those "few" that were with him. Far too often, we tend to jump the gun and spew details to everyone and their mama long before it's wise to do so. Unlike Nehemiah, we are sometimes willing to let our excitement and eagerness get the best of us, and our mouth's get us in trouble (pertaining to the details that we should have held close). We need to be like Nehemiah and learn who we can trust, and (at times) we need to keep some things just between us and God - until the right time to share with others has been made obvious.
3. Leaders take inventory before they take action! (Neh 2:12-16) Nehemiah knew what he wanted to do in Jerusalem. It was what he had prayed about. It was what he had been called to do. It was to rebuild the wall and restore the city! And yet, before casting his vision and getting his people to jump on the bandwagon, he took a personal inventory of the situation. He knew the walls had been destroyed and the city was in ruins; his brother had already told him that before he left the service of King Artaxerxes - but he nevertheless wanted to see the evidences first hand so he would know exactly what he was dealing with. Often times, we fail to show this kind of wisdom in our leadership endeavors. We sometimes begin to craft plans and recruit people before having our own complete understanding of what the situation will require. Like Nehemiah, we need to make every effort to gain a personal and full understanding of situations that we seek to change before we begin casting a vision and leading others where we have not been ourselves.
4. Leaders cast a vision - telling the full report! (Neh 2:17-18) Nehemiah had taken care of the small things. He had kept those close who he could trust. He had taken a personal inventory of the situation. And now came the time for him to cast a vision to God's people and release information that had been hitherto undisclosed. And so he did just that - and he included the bad information with the good! He started by telling the people the bad news: "You see the trouble and disgrace we are in! Jerusalem lies in ruins! It's destroyed! Everything has been burned up!" and then he began to solicit their action! But Nehemiah didn't stop there! After requesting that God's people join him on his mission to rebuild Jerusalem, he threw in the good news when it needed to be heard the most, as he explained how God had already been working on their behalf to get the building plans started! He even told them about how God had impressed the King give his blessings to the whole deal! Nehemiah didn't hold back the good news or the bad; he gave God's people the full report and requested that they join him! Sometimes, we're known to water down the report and tell people what they want to hear. We tend to leave out the bad news out of fear it might turn people away, and sometimes we leave out the good news out of fear people will jump on the bandwagon for the wrong reasons. Let's start leading like Nehemiah; let's give the full report when we cast the vision!