Are you ready to leverage your influence and make a positive impact right now, right where you are? Listen to this episode of the SALLT Leadership Podcast as we share the one question that will inspire you to step into your purpose and help you know exactly what you should be doing to create positive change.
Episode 6 Show Notes
What is the Wall in Front of Your House?
“Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house. Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his house. Next to him, Shemaiah son of Shekaniah, the guard at the East Gate, made repairs. Next to him, Hananiah son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. Next to them, Meshullam son of Berekiah made repairs opposite his living quarters.” - Nehemiah 3:28-30
Key Takeaways:
The currency of the Kingdom of God is love.
The story of Nehemiah. They completed this unbelievable challenge of building a wall for their city in only 52 days which immediately shifted the culture of that community to a place of peace and safety.
Changing the world doesn’t have to be dramatic. It starts by addressing the wall in front of your house.
What does the wall in front of your house mean to you? Think proximity – where has God got you planted.
Stop comparing your impact and influence to other people. In the kingdom of God, everybody’s contribution is critical to the outcome of making earth look more like Heaven.
Next Steps:
00:05: Well, welcome to the SALLT Leadership Podcast, the podcast for men and women who want to live a purpose filled existence, who want to grow in their faith, who want to maximize their abilities and influence for the Kingdom of God. I'm Wes Lane. And in case you've slept since the last podcast, let me remind you of what the context is for this podcast. And in fact, it's not only the podcast context, it's your context. And it's this: You have been design built by a living, loving God who has sent you into a moment of history, to the community you live in, as part of an overarching strategy to redeem and restore the Earth to Himself. Your life matters. It has purpose and meaning. And God has plans for your life. He wants to see to your success. He has a vested interest in seeing to your success. Your adventure is all there before you, if you will dare to step into it. And so let me remind you of this verse, Ephesians 1:11, "Before we were even born, he gave us our destiny; that we would fulfill the plan of God who always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart."
01:26: The title of today's show is Episode 6: ‘What is the Wall in Front of Your House?’ Let me recap just a tad from Episode 5, and it's this: What is culture? Remember? Culture is a man made atmosphere in which we live. It's beliefs, customs, language, habits and values, social organization and processes. It's the world that we live in, and it's subject to change. And culture comes in all shapes and sizes: a nation, a city, a family, an office, a Facebook group. And then finally, also, what... Recap. What does it mean to be a change agent to culture as a follower of Jesus? It means our pursuit of becoming more like Jesus and being what He said we should be, which is salt and light to the places within which God has placed you. The currency we deal with in the Kingdom of God is love. And Jesus came to set the captives free. So have you and so have I. And so today, let's chat about tossing out this question. Having recapped this, let's think about this. So what's the wall in front of your house? What's the wall?
02:40: Now, in that, what I'm referring to is... The reference is, "the wall in front of our house." It's from the story of Nehemiah in the Bible. You know in ancient cities, cities with walls around them really meant something. And what do they mean? They meant it was more of a place of peace. It was a place in which you didn't have to walk around with a weapon in one hand all the time. It was a place in which you could go to sleep and not have to worry about whether some marauders were gonna come in and take you out while you were sleeping. It's a place of safety in which you could take up other things. You could learn how to be an artisan. You could be a bricklayer. You could do this and do that. You weren't always having to be a soldier all the time. That's what it meant. And so it meant a lot to have a wall around a city.
03:31: And so the Book of Nehemiah is the remarkable story of just a common man upon whom God places a burden to go to the aid of his fellow Jewish brethren living in a very dangerous, unwalled city ruins of Jerusalem. That wall had been torn down almost a century before. And then he becomes a change agent by going to that city and inspiring the beleaguered residents of that place to actually become change agents themselves and change everything. His obedience to God resulted, in fact, in that place becoming united, and for them to rebuild the wall around that city in a miraculous 52 days. It's an extraordinary story. And let me just read one short passage to you, that's pertinent, from Nehemiah 3:28-30. It's this: "Above the Horse Gate, the priests made repairs, each in front of his own house. Next to them, Zadok son of Immer made repairs opposite his house. Next to him, Shemaiah son of Shekaniah, the guard at the East Gate, made repairs. Next to him, Hananiah son of Shelemiah, and Hanun, the sixth son of Zalaph, repaired another section. Next to them, Meshullam son of Berekiah made repairs opposite his living quarters."
05:04: These folks completed that unbelievable challenge in only 52 days, which immediately shifted the culture of that city to a place of peace and safety. But here's the point, here's the point. God has designed you to be a salt and light change agent for the redemption and restoration of the community in which you find yourself. People compare themselves a lot of times. They look at people like Wilberforce, like we talked about last time, or Nehemiah this time, and they think, "Gosh, those guys did that stuff. How does my input even matter?" You know something? I used to think about that. I used to think about Billy Graham when he would be in these stadiums preaching to thousands and thousands and thousands of people. And I literally used to think, "Wow, how could anything I do even matter because it... In fact, the only people that really make a difference are these big name peoples." And I'll tell you what. That's just nonsense. In fact, you really gotta question where those thoughts come from because the truth is that in the Kingdom of God, everybody's contribution is critical to the outcome. Everybody matters. Everybody has a role to play.
06:29: And as followers of Jesus, we're first called... Now hear this. We're first, as followers of Jesus, we are first called to be change agents in charge of the wall in front of our own house. Now, what do I mean there? So this is where a lot of Jesus followers, frankly, drop the ball because they skip the wall in front of their house. They're immediately... They're chasing the... "Oh, that's sexier over there." Or, "That is awesome. I can be more important. I can look more important. I can feel more important if I'm doing this." And so they ignore the wall in front of their house. Well, when I say that, what am I talking about? Think proximity. Think proximity. Where God has got you planted, your family. Your family is your number one. That's the first priority in the wall in front of your house. Or what about your neighborhood, your workplace, a group of friends that you have? Every one of those has a culture associated to it. Is that culture a glorifying one to God? Is that a salt and light culture? Have you been a change agent in the group right closest to you?
07:42: I mean so many times we hear about these people that are doing this neat thing and that neat thing, and their home life is a disaster zone. Their marriage is a mess. They have skipped... They've gone to stuff that, to them, is actually easier than to deal with the wall right in front of their house. But if you think about it, if you think about the wall surrounding the ruins of Jerusalem. Those people had to tend to the wall right in front of their house. If anyone did not, the whole city was at risk. So remember, you're not alone at this. You've got the Holy Spirit living within you, who will lead you and guide you. Ask Him. Ask Him about what your priorities are, what you should be doing. Ask Him about your family, your neighborhood, your workplace, your friends. This is an adventure He's willing to take you on, if you'll look at it as such. And you don't have to wait to join a club or a non-profit or say, "Well, I'll do... " You've got opportunities right there to impact your world and the world around you.
08:54: Put together your own Clapham Circle just like Wilberforce had his friends. They used to call it the Clapham Circle. All Clapham was, was just a neighborhood in London. But he had a group of friends, they were friends, they talked about these... They shared each other's burdens. They helped one another be successful. I've got friends. I do that with a group of friends. We talk about things. We help one another be successful. We don't keep secrets about that. We serve one another because we recognize that all of these things... There are chinks. We don't want any chinks in our armor. Are you a part of a church? Are you a part of a group in that vein? Are you part of a group like that that can help you be successful? So where has He planted you? Bloom right there. Bloom right where He's planted you. God is the God of promotion. This is an important thing to realize. God is the God of promotion. If you are successful where He's planted you, He will move you and give you greater opportunities. That's the way it works. That's always the way. He promotes those who are responsible in the first things.
10:12: And there are thousands in this city. I mean imagine what that would look like if every one of us... And think about that. The thousands of Christians in this greater Oklahoma City metro area, the thousands of them. What if we all really did a great job of tending the walls in front of our own homes? What would our city look like if we just did that? Well, there's a profound move of God taking place in our city right now. You've heard me say it before and I'll say it again, He sent you to be on His team in this moment. No one else is coming. You and I are the team on the ground right now. He would not have sent us if He did not actually believe we could pull it off. And what is God doing in that movement right now? He's unifying us. He's bringing us together. He's making it a new culture for us not to be criticizing one another, taking shots at one another, but rather to love one another and to be Jesus to one another. To stop being hypocrites to the world, as we are often known as being. He's calling us to be that army of salt and light, men and women who profoundly love the city and who love one another profoundly. That's the new normal He's creating, people from whom, whose presence darkness falls.
11:41: He's always been looking for folks like that, always. Always looking for people of salt and light. Always looking for those proverbial cities on a hill from which the light shines brightly throughout. Always looking for that place that kings and nations will come to. There is no place like that in this country right now. There is no place like that, but He is willing for there to be. He's willing for that. He's looking for that. If we will dare, if we will rise up, He will bless that. That's what He wants. That's what He wants in this moment. He's looking for us to become a spiritual epicenter to a world, a spiritual capital to a nation. That's breathtaking. And what an awesome thing that He actually thinks that you and I, you and I, can pull that off. Nobody else is coming for that. Be that person. Be that person. Everything will change if we will just do that.
12:43: Here's the last right steps for you. Read the Book of Nehemiah and the Book of Acts. Understand this. Understand how God works through people. Nothing's changed. God has never changed. That's what he says in Malachi 3:6, "For I, the Lord, do not change..." This is not rocket science, folks. This is how He does stuff. Ask God to speak to you as you read and meditate on those rich lessons. And lastly, keep a spiritual journal. I've done that for probably 25 years. I wish I'd done it for longer than that. You will marvel when you go back and read what He's done in your life. It will build your faith. So imagine a city in which it's commonplace for every follower of Jesus to actually believe it when God says He's the God of the impossible. You can do this. Rise up. I'll see you next time.