11 August 2009 Devotion for Today "Servants of the Most High God" Ezra 5:8-11

Let it be known to the king that we went into the province of Judea, to the temple of the great God, which is being built with heavy stones, and timber is being laid in the walls; and this work goes on diligently and prospers in their hands.
9 Then we asked those elders, and spoke thus to them: “Who commanded you to build this temple and to finish these walls?” 10 We also asked them their names to inform you, that we might write the names of the men who were chief among them.
11 And thus they returned us an answer, saying: “We are the servants of the God of heaven and earth, and we are rebuilding the temple that was built many years ago, which a great king of Israel built and completed. (Ezra 5:8-11)

Robert Greenleaf, founder of the Servant Leadership movement, wrote: "Some coercive power is overt and brutal. Some is covert and manipulative. The former is open and acknowledged; the latter is insidious and hard to detect." ( "The Servant as Leader", 1970 Edition) We find both forms of leadership described here in this text with the king representing coercive power, and the pagan leaders of Jerusalem (elders) who would be described as covert or manipulative. But there is a third kind of leader- the servant leader- among the leaders of the Jews who had to stop their work long enough to write this letter to the king of Persia. First of all, there is not one trace of bitterness or resentment in their letter which takes up most of the chapter. Perhaps that might have been justified- because King Cyrus, the present king's predecessor, had indeed given the money as well as the authority to begin construction of the Temple but had forgotten to copy a letter and send it to their rivals in Jerusalem. Secondly, they refused to get into the game of competition and underhandedness and displays of raw power that one finds in politics. There is a huge temptation to fight whenever we are not getting our way, or when we see others trying to hurt us, or hurting what we are doing. The Jewish leaders, however, recognized that they were servants of the Most High God. The responsibility for exercising that kind of power lay with Him and not with themselves. The Jews, such as Zerubabbel, was very wise in the use of his words not once suggesting that the king had made a mistake. He was very delicate, graceful, poised and composed when inwardly he may have been angry for the injustice he and his people suffered. As a servant leader he knew that he was responsible not just to articulate his own feelings, but had the needs of his people, and especially the needs of the God he served, in clear focus as he wrote.

Today you will face many temptations as a servant leader that will cry out at you: to assert your own rights, to react towards slights and pettiness that is leveled at you, to engage in criticism when something is not done right. How you respond to these matters will determine not only the success or failure of your day, but will determine whether God is glorified or not. We, like the ones in the Book of Ezra, are also Servants of the Most High God. Let us not forget that we represent Him, and may we be under His control and authority for yet another day.

Prayer: Heavenly Father, I am Your servant, a servant of the Most High God. Forgive me for not representing You very well yesterday. I aspire to be the best servant that I am capable of being today, so help me walk in wisdom as I take on the mantel of Your trust today. Give me the wisdom of knowing how to answer everyone- how to be direct and firm, yet gracious and kind, in every communication that I give. May I truly be a servant leader today.

In Jesus Name I pray, Amen.