The priests and the Levites stood to bless the people, and God heard them. (2 Chron. 30:27)
Expanded Passage: 2 Kings 18:1-7; 2 Chronicles 29:3-7, 18-19, 27-30; 30:1, 13, 25-27
Within the missions organization I serve, the employees use a tool to measure their own personal growth. Quarterly reviews are expected, and though some leaders give more attention to them than others, one of the expectations of this review is simply to listen to the individual’s growth spiritually, personally, and professionally, and provide encouragement where needed. My first year on the job, I was an overachiever. Rather than attainable goals broken down into areas that made sense for my lifestyle, interests, passions, and stage of life, my personal growth plan was filled with points and subpoints.
Living out my plan became a hard thing, especially when my health made me take a sideline. My supervisor offered gentle counsel to right-size my plan and the next quarter gave me such happy encouragement when I was able to look back over the two quarters and see I’d been given a godly blessing. That experience stuck with me and has encouraged me to provide blessing and encouragement to those I lead.
The priests and Levites were brought together by King Hezekiah. This group of God’s people, originally charged with the spiritual direction of all the people, had probably fallen into decades of discouragement following the atrocities initiated and perpetuated by the previous king. King Hezekiah led first by his own commitment to God and then charged the priests and Levites with a right-sized return to their role and the resources to bring great blessing to God’s people.
Bless the people you lead.
Sandy Emmett is the director of care for Global Partners of The Wesleyan Church. She enjoys riding bicycles, hiking, walking her dogs, playing with her grandchildren, and reading a good book.
© 2024 Wesleyan Publishing House. Reprinted from Light from the Word. Used by permission. Scriptures taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®.
