Nehemiah's Leadership Failure

Usually Nehemiah is lauded as an example of outstanding leadership...which he should be. We can also learn from a significant failure in his leadership approach.

Simply put, Nehemiah didn't establish people to carry on the right direction in his absence. He must have been a forceful man indeed, but when he returned to Jerusalem a few things didn't go well:

• Eliashib the priest gave Tobiah storeroom space in the temple (Nehemiah 13:4-9)
• The Levite priests and singers weren't provided for (Nehemiah 13:10-13)
• The leaders allowed the people and foreign traders to desecrate the Sabbath (Nehemiah 13:15-22)
• Jewish men,. including priests, intermarried with non-Jewish women (Nehemiah 13:23-29)

To his credit, Nehemiah vigorously corrected all these upon his return to Jerusalem.

What should we, as leaders today, learn from this story? I recommend you seriously think about the team of people that you're developing who can carry on leadership roles even in your absence. And in your families, what procedures can you establish to make sure things go well when you travel or are unavailable for a few hours or days?

If it only goes well when you're personally present, your leadership work isn't done.