A Mind to Work

When Nehemiah arrived in Jerusalem, he found the city in ruins. His audacious plan to rebuild the city could have been viewed as overly optimistic.

This was not the flourishing Jerusalem of King David or King Hezekiah. The city had been destroyed by invading Babylonian armies, and the remaining inhabitants had been demoralized. Nehemiah encouraged the people to rebuild the city wall, an enormous task made more difficult by the opposition of those committed to hinder any progress. Tobiah, an Ammonite, mocked Nehemiah’s people, saying, “Whatever they build, if even a fox goes up on it, he will break down their stone wall” (Nehemiah 4:3).

Nehemiah responded by pleading with God for deliverance. “Hear, O our God, for we are despised; turn their reproach on their own heads, and give them as plunder to a land of captivity!” (verse 4). The ultimate success of the building project can be traced to a single telling factor. Verse 6 says, “The people had a mind to work.” One translation says, “The people worked with all their heart” (NIV).

Against overwhelming odds, against real enemies committed to their demise, the people of Judah worked enthusiastically to achieve a goal that others may have found impossible. The difference was that they “had a mind to work”; they were committed to carrying out the task God had placed on their hearts.

Church growth is frequently limited or disadvantaged for the same reason. Churches that have “a mind to work” undertake outreach and are involved in the community for the purpose of inviting people to accept Jesus as Lord and Savior.

When churches are not growing, it is almost always because the members do not have “a mind to work.” Evangelism takes effort, involvement, and investment, but the returns make the effort worthwhile. A ministry mindset transforms a church into a soul-winning center. When the church has “a mind to work,” church health and church growth are inevitable.