Scripture Focus: Ezra 8:1–20
Maybe you are leading a non-profit, a ministry, or a business, and you are staring at a gap. You look at your team, and you know they are depending on you to make it work. The pressure to fix it fast is overwhelming. But what if the answer isn’t to rush?
Ezra is leading a massive group of exiles back to Jerusalem. It’s a dangerous, high-stakes mission. He has gathered the people, he has the gold and silver, and he begins to review his troops.
Verse 15 says:
“I gathered them to the river that runs to Ahava, and there we camped three days. As I reviewed the people and the priests, I found there none of the sons of Levi.”
Imagine that moment. They are ready to launch. But Ezra realizes something critical is missing. He has the crowd, but he doesn’t have the ministers. He is missing the spiritual infrastructure required to make the mission legitimate.
Now, a panicked leader would say, “We’ll figure it out on the way! We have to move!”
But Ezra worked with a profound purpose. He realized that a mission without the right partners is a mission destined to fail.
So, what does he do? He doesn’t just put out a generic “Help Wanted” advert.
- He identifies leaders: He gathers men of insight—Elnathan, Jarib, Zechariah, and others.
- He chooses a credible target: He sends this delegation to a specific place (Casiphia) to meet a specific man (Iddo).
- He sends a specific message: He tells them exactly what to say: “Bring us ministers for the house of our God.”
Ezra 8:18 gives us the beautiful result of this due diligence:
“And because the gracious hand of our God was on us, they brought us Sherebiah, a capable man… and his sons and brothers, 18 in all.”
They also brought temple servants and others—over 200 qualified, credible partners.
When faced with a challenge, what’s your immediate response? The temptation is to scramble, to grab at any opportunity, to rush the process because the need is urgent.
But Ezra teaches us that urgency requires accuracy.
Ezra’s “wise delay” at the canal allowed him to identify risks and resolve them before the journey began. He needed credible partners. He needed a Sherebiah—a “man of understanding.”
Ezra didn’t find the Levites by accident. He gathered his leaders, he exercised wisdom, and he trusted that the “good hand of God” would lead them to the right people.
So, as you face a gap, and you feel that burden to fill it up, take a breath. Do not rush into anxiety.
Gathering team in prayer and fasting can be a critical step, asking God for help.
God’s blessings!
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