“THE INESTIMABLE VALUE OF SILENCE”

“THE INESTIMABLE VALUE OF SILENCE”

Then I arose in the night, I and a few men with me; I told no one what my God had put in my heart to do at Jerusalem; nor was there any animal with me, except the one on which I rode. 
Nehemiah 2:12 - NKJV

Nehemiah is one of my favorites characters in the whole Bible. He is a fantastic leader and a humble servant of the Lord. Among his many credentials, there is one extremely important: Nehemiah knew the value of silence, and even more important, he knew what and when to say things.

We see that clearly in two instances of his life: first, after receiving the news of the disastrous situation of his beloved city - Jerusalem, as the King of Persia asked him what he wanted to do about it, Nehemiah’s answer was none but “pray to the God in Heaven.”

And then we have the situation which is the context of the verse we have today: he goes to Jerusalem, and before doing anything, before starting any work or engaging in any conversation, he does a silent and careful assessment of what needed to be accomplished. He was discrete, diligent, methodical and really waited on God’s directions before successfully undertaking one of the most important tasks of his life, the restoration of the walls of Jerusalem.

Nehemiah was a very high, top notch government official of the Persian Empire, he had the authority, power and resources to make a lot of “noise”, but he preferred the silence, the diplomacy and the prudent good sense; in other words, he chose to keep his mouth shut and his heart open to what the Lord wanted him to say and do. What a beloved servant!!

I believe we must learn with our brother Nehemiah - a lot indeed - and start valuing the hidden treasures of silence and carefulness in all we say and do.

Wishing many blessings to you and your family!
Pastor Joshua