This is a post from the Currie Courier, 1 September 2009, v.17.1
The Book of Nehemiah has often drawn me for encouragement and guidance on the
subject of leadership. We held our annual New Hope International mission retreat in Williamsburg, Virginia, in June, with 16 people participating, including our missionary couple from India, another couple raising support to go to Russia, a new couple who joined our mission in January of this year, and a new Board member, plus our administrator, current Board members, and friends of the mission. We spent four days of Biblical teaching, worship, prayer, and presentations and discussions on discipleship, communication, building community across cultures, and raising support. We have been
accepted to set up an informational display at the Urbana 09 missions conference, sponsored by Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, from December 27 to 29, 2009, in St. Louis, where approximately 20,000 people will gather to hear about missions around the world. At that conference, we are hoping to connect with other missions and to encourage
people to enter the fields of mission. Our mission has grown from a simple non-profit organization set up in 1995 to serve the needs of the Currie family in Russia, to one that is providing support and guidance for other missionaries around the world, and so, during the past several weeks, I have once again been reading Nehemiah for encouragement and guidance in lessons of leadership.
In future newsletters, I will go into more detail about the various leadership lessons that I have gleaned, but let me begin with five basic lessons from Nehemiah. First, Nehemiah sought the welfare of his countrymen first, and not his own welfare, peace, or prosperity. He was a servant leader. Second, when he heard that his countrymen were in affliction, living in unfavorable conditions, he wept and mourned, fasted and prayed—he was passionate about the need of other people, and he turned to God first, knowing that the need was greater than he alone could meet. Third,Nehemiah acted in obedience, and with the favor of the King, even though that king was an unbeliever. He trusted God for guidance through the authority that was over him. Fourth, as he prayed and trusted God, he also had a practical plan for completing the work. Fifth, as the work progressed, enemies came against him repeatedly and ever more forcefully, attempting to stop the work through tactics of discouragement, fear, and physical threats. But through all the ups and downs, through the threats of his enemies and the complaints of his countrymen, Nehemiah steadily kept at the work that God had given him to do.
In like manner, we pray that we can keep steadily at the work that God has given us to do. Unexpected changes in visa laws have kept me in the United States while Mark travels back and forth to Russia, and to the other countries where our New Hope missionaries live, for extended periods of time. But these changes have led to an unexpected opportunity to further my education and acquire new skills that I will continue to use to help missionaries. We adjust to changing circumstances, trusting that God uses government authorities to open and close doors, always guiding us, so that the work consistently proceeds. And, like Nehemiah, with each change we pray, “Now therefore, O God, strengthen my hands” (Nehemiah 6:9).
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