Article September 10, 1949 Issue

"A MIND TO WORK"

ALLENE E. THORNBURGH

The attitude which Nehemiah and his collaborators held in building the wall around Jerusalem is the attitude which inevitably leads to the solving of problems, the correcting of situations, and the achieving of success, prosperity, and peace by individuals and nations. Theirs was the attitude of determination to consummate a divinely appointed task, conjoined with the willingness to sacrifice all sense of self to accomplish it. The secret of true achievement is aptly expressed in Nehemiah's familiar words (Neh. 4:6), "So built we the wall; ... for the people had a mind to work."

The great builder then goes on to relate in detail just how the people worked. First, they prayed for divine help; then they set up armed watches by day and by night to prevent enemy attacks. They refused to listen to scoffs and wiles obviously intended to obstruct the building of the wall. They had "a mind to work," and they did. Nehemiah further relates (verse 23), "So neither I, nor my brethren, nor my servants, nor the men of the guard which followed me, none of us put off our clothes, saving that everyone put them off for washing."

Today a right attitude toward work is urgently needed. The world, shaken to its very foundation by the last great war, needs the consecrated, wholehearted, and constructive efforts of all men and nations for the task of rehabilitation, reconstruction, and regeneration so that mankind may experience health, peace, and progress. However, to work with the same clarity of purpose and zeal as the workers of Scriptural record and maintain consistent satisfaction, joy, inspiration, and accomplishment in all our activities necessitates an understanding of spiritual reality.

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