Care Connections—Nehemiah: Motivation to Rebuild

By Kam Cook

Stephen Ministry Coordinator

Sunday Schools classes that use the Formations literature are currently studying Ezra, Nehemiah, and Haggai. We would do well to consider these books in light of our current situation at HHBC. I am adapting four articles I wrote last winter on “Rebuilding” to reflect the results of the Church Survey which were recently presented to the congregation at the Town Hall Meeting on Wednesday, October 19.

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Then I said to them, “You see the distress that we are in, how Jerusalem lies waste, and its gates are burned with fire. Come and let us rebuild the wall of Jerusalem, that we may no longer be a reproach.” (Nehemiah 2:17)

The Old Testament books of Ezra (the priest) and Nehemiah (the governor) collectively deal with the period in which the Temple and Jerusalem were rebuilt following the Babylonian Captivity. After Persia conquered Babylon (530 BC), a remnant of the Jews was allowed to return from exile in Babylon to their homeland by the Persian King Cyrus (c. 538 BCE). Finding Jerusalem in ruins, populated by foreigners and vulnerable to attack, they set out to 1) rebuild the Temple (536-16 BCE), 2) restore the community of believers under Ezra and 3) rebuild Jerusalem under Nehemiah.

The rebuilding of Jerusalem was as much a spiritual rebuilding as it was a physical project, and both required God’s help. The wall around Jerusalem had lain in rubble for decades because no one had the spiritual insight and fortitude to rebuild it. We at HHBC likewise put on blinders, refusing to address issues in our congregation, kicking the can of responsibility to the next person until it finally hit the wall during the summer of 2021 (excuse the cliches). Like the Jews, we must rebuild spiritually while rebuilding our walls – our attendance and participation in the worship experiences and ministries available through HHBC.

The Book of Nehemiah serves as an object lesson for us today.
After receiving permission from the king to go to Jerusalem to rebuild its walls, Nehemiah surveyed its devastation (Neh 2:12-15). Observing the destruction, he turned to God for guidance. The Book of Nehemiah tells us the 1ststep in rebuilding our spiritual lives is Motivation (Neh 2:9-20). Nehemiah helped the Jews see the need for rebuilding (Neh 2:9-16). Although the Jewish exiles had already rebuilt the Temple, it wasn’t enough – it had become urgent for them to rebuild the wall of Jerusalem also. The lack of a wall was symbolic of the fact that the sins that had caused their captivity and exile were happening all over again.

Like Nehemiah, we needed to survey the destruction of our walls. Last spring, we asked members to help us survey the damage that has been done to our walls so that we may rebuild them. The survey has enabled us as individuals and as members of this congregation to honestly see our “walls” that are broken and in decay. To better understand the church we are today, the survey addressed: Who We Are; Where We Have Been; Where We Are Now and Where We Want to Go.

Interestingly, the reasons people joined HHBC and the reasons they have stayed do not necessarily correlate. People joined HHBC for its worship style (31%), moderate church and denominational ties (27%), pastor (26%), church ministries (26%), church facility and locations (25%) church reputation (21%), music program (21%), friends (20%), family history (14%) and welcoming congregation (6%). However, members have been motivated to remain at HHBC by relationships (77%), church identity (57%), church loyalty (38.5%), worship style and music (36%), beauty of the church facility and location (28.5%), expectations (26%), missions and community involvement (24%), church ministries (20%) and fear of trying to find another church (6%).

In Nehemiah 2:17-20, Nehemiah shared his vision of what Jerusalem could again become. The Jews recognized God’s leading and were motivated to believe it could be done. Our HHBC loyal “remnant” (currently we have about 115 active members out of a congregation of approximately 300 members) is motivated to do all we can to rebuild HHBC, to help formulate and share our vision for what HHBC can become with God in control. Although it has been a drastic way of making changes, the turmoil of the past few years has given us the motivation to look at our failings and look for opportunities to rectify them. Over the next few weeks, we will discuss four other steps in rebuilding found in the Book of Nehemiah.

If you lack motivation in rebuilding the walls of your life and would like someone to listen, a trained Stephen Minister is available to walk alongside you on your journey. For more information on how Stephen Ministry can provide you with confidential, nonjudgmental one-to-one lay pastoral care, contact Referrals Coordinator Peggy Williams at (478) 719-3340 or pjwms12@gmail.com.

Recognizing that God is the ultimate Cure Giver, the Mission of the Highland Hills Baptist Church Stephen Ministry is to serve God and bring Christ’s healing love to individuals who are experiencing life’s challenges through confidential, non-judgmental, one-on-one Christian care