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Have you ever been in charge of a big project? What’s one of your biggest assets? A team of workers with a willingness to see the project completed.
In the Old Testament, we read of Nehemiah, a cupbearer to Artaxerxes, the King of Persia. Nehemiah heard of the deplorable condition of Jerusalem and the walls surrounding it, and as an Israelite, it grieved his heart.
Nehemiah prayed and fasted, and then developed a plan to rebuild the walls and gates. This would be a huge undertaking, but Nehemiah had a willingness to do the task God put in his heart. He secured financing and supplies for his project, and presented his vision to the people. In Nehemiah 2:18, we read their reply. “Let us rise up and build.”
The people had a ‘mind to work.’ After the people made up their minds, they worked from early morning until dark. In a united effort, they finished the job in such a short amount of time, it scared their enemies because they realized that surely this work had been done with the help of God.
A great blessing and the key to getting the job done lay in the hearts of the willing workers Nehemiah employed. “So built we the wall; and all the wall was joined together unto the half thereof: for the people had a mind to work” (Neh. 4:6). The New International Version says, “the people worked with all their heart.”
When a rich, young man asked Jesus what he must do to have eternal life, Jesus went straight to the heart of the matter by telling him to sell everything he owned and follow Him. The young man’s material possessions stood between and exceeded his love for God. Outward, he displayed a willingness to follow Jesus, but Jesus knew his heart. Selling his possessions wouldn’t secure eternal life, but they stood in the way of his relationship with God.
Does anything stand between you and God? If God looked deep into your heart, would He find anything but a willingness to follow Him whatever the cost?
Willingness is more than a positive attitude. The Lord looks for those who are prepared to give their all, someone ready to reap the harvest, and labor for the kingdom.
Willingness is a heart condition. Usually when we hear that phrase, a deterioration of the physical heart comes to mind, the last thing anyone would want. In this case, the heart condition is desirable, for when we have an attitude of servitude and a willingness to serve God, great things will be accomplished for His kingdom.
I desire for God to commend me for my service to Him when I get to Heaven. I want to accomplish the job God has for me, so I intend to roll up my sleeves and get to work. Willingness plus work equals “Well done, good and faithful servant!”
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