Day 12: Together, We Build the Walls of the City

The year is 445BC.

A man stands before the broken walls of Jerusalem. He has travelled around 1,600km to get here. A journey that took him around four months.

And now he finally sees it with his own eyes. The gates are charred. The stones are scattered. A city that was meant to carry the glory of God has been reduced to rubble.

His name is Nehemiah.

But Nehemiah does not despair. He doesn’t make a grand speech or wait for a legendary hero to arrive. Instead, he does something surprisingly mundane. He makes a list.

You will find that list in Nehemiah 3. When you first read it, I guarantee, you will find it really ordinary, almost boring. It’s just names. Sections of a wall, gates and towers.

But hidden in this list is one of the most beautiful pictures in all of Scripture. Nehemiah knew that the wall was too big for one man, so he looked for everyone.

“Priests, you take this section. Goldsmiths, you take that gate. Families, your stretch begins here.”

Even the daughters picked up stones and built.

And as you read, one small phrase keeps appearing like a heartbeat through the chapter: “Next to”, “next to”, “next to…” – a total of 28 times in a chapter of 32 verses. No one person rebuilt the entire wall. But everyone rebuilt their part.

And God is not looking for “someone else.” He is looking at you!

Turning Singapore Godward will not happen because of one church. It won’t happen because of one superstar leader or one single massive movement. God has never worked that way.

Even in Nehemiah’s day, the priests couldn’t do it all. The goldsmiths couldn’t repair every gate. It took everyone taking their place.

But there is a verse in this chapter that we often miss. In Nehemiah 3:5, the people of Tekoa worked hard, but their nobles did not participate. They were there. They saw the rubble. They heard the appeal. But they decided someone else would do the heavy lifting.

I wonder if we have done the same. We see what’s missing and what needs fixing. And we tell ourselves: “Ahh… the church leadership will handle it” or “It’s not my issue but the Pastor’s.”

But the wall does not rebuild itself. And God is not looking for “someone else.” He is looking at you!

“But I can’t do it all!”

Yes! And here’s why I find Nehemiah 3 so encouraging. Nobody was asked to do everything, just their part. Just the section of the wall right in front of their house. And side by side, next to, next to, next to, the wall rose, stone by stone.

Stop waiting for someone else to do something. Participate!

Imagine this across Singapore:

A father who decides to pray with his children. That’s his section of the wall.

A professional who chooses integrity over a shortcut. That’s her section.

A Christian choosing to speak grace rather than condemnation. That’s another stone.

A church that looks past its own walls and into the needs of the community. That’s their gate.

Not the whole wall – just our part. But when we stand “next to each other”, Singapore begins to change. Our nation becomes more than just successful; it becomes aware of the presence of God.

So stop walking past the rubble, stop waiting for someone else to do something. Participate! And when you decide to, don’t look at everything and begin feeling overwhelmed.

Just walk up to your portion of the wall, then look to your left and to your right. There’s going to be someone next to you who is also called to build. Stand next to them. Pick up your stones.

The wall is waiting. Your section is waiting. Let’s do this together.

Let’s pray.

Father, we want to thank You Lord, that You are a God who always hears our prayers. And this day, we want to ask for your forgiveness for the moments we have seen the wall and seen the rubble, and merely walked past it. We ask for Your forgiveness, O Lord.

We ask also for courage to see the wall, as well as the strength to hold the stone and to build it. Lord, we pray also that in the midst of it, grant us the assurance, and as we do so, on our left and on our right, there are also fellow brothers and sisters, building the wall in obedience to You. So Lord, grant us the grace to achieve this for Your glory.

In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen!