Have you lost sight of your larger vision? (120-1)

The period following a great leadership success can become a dangerous time. Leaders can be tempted toward being pleased with the accomplishment, basking in the praise and momentum can be lost. Effective leaders understand the difference between short-term goals and long-term vision. Read Nehemiah 6:15-7:3.

Nehemiah had overseen a physical miracle; the wall project was completed with a minimum staff of amateurs, under extremely adverse conditions in a record 52 days. When the neighboring nations heard about this, they lost self-confidence realizing this work had been done with the help of God. But similar to virtually every project that each of us deals with on a daily basis, completing the wall wasn’t an end-all solution but only a stepping stone in the process of protecting God’s city Jerusalem and unifying God’s people. It is common for even experienced leaders to become so involved in one major portion of the overall goal that they loose sight of the larger vision. Nehemiah did not fall prey to that problem.

Once the wall was completed Nehemiah focused on the process of on-going leadership and security for the city. He realized the new problems with the security of Jerusalem would come from the outside if people slipped through the open gates under the cover of darkness and the problems would come from the inside if the city was managed by men that did not have integrity. Nehemiah quickly shifted his attention away from the glory of the “miracle wall construction project” to focus on the new issues that could harm the greater vision God had given him.

Are you in the midst of a major project or effort that will move your team closer to completing the larger vision? Is there any danger that you may have lost sight that your project is only part of a larger vision? Wise leaders keep perspective concerning the larger mission and vision.