Image: Golden Gate Bridge by Joseph C. Filer and Jason W. Filer.
Many of the biggest projects on earth are civil engineering projects. The Great Pyramid at Giza is the height of a fifty-story building and built out of “bricks” that weigh 5,000 pounds. How did they do that in 2560 B.C.?
The Great Wall of China is some 13,000 miles long. Thirteen thousand miles is more than halfway around the world!
The New York City subway system includes hundreds of miles of tunnels under both land and sea, with 665 miles of train tracks.
The city of Venice is built on top of thousands of wooden pilings driven into the sea.
And let’s not forget the Chunnel, the new 30-mile tunnel under the English Channel that allows cars to drive from England to France. Can you imagine the engineering work—and the money required—to build a tunnel under the ocean?
There are so many other impressive feats: the Roman Colosseum, the Panama Canal, the Hoover Dam, the Golden Gate Bridge, the Brooklyn Bridge. From the Bible, Hezekiah’s Tunnel remains impressive, 2 Chronicles 32:2-4. Even Louisiana’s Lake Pontchartrain Causeway makes the list; though completed in 1959, it remains the longest continuous stretch of bridge over water in the world (28 miles).
These massive infrastructure projects require incredible planning, gifted leadership, and most of all, an extraordinary labor force.
Consider the walls of Jerusalem. When the people returned from Babylonian captivity, the walls of their beloved capital city had been destroyed, burned, and turned to rubble. A city without walls was not simply vulnerable to attack. It was naked in a manner that was considered shameful. The people were embarrassed about the public humiliation of a once-great city with no proud walls encircling it.
One day the king noticed Nehemiah was not in good spirits. “Why should not my countenance be sad, when the city, the place of my fathers’ tombs, lies in waste, and the gates thereof are consumed with fire?” Nehemiah 2:3. King Artaxerxes sent Nehemiah home to Jerusalem with authority to lead a wall-building project. When Nehemiah met with the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, he told them the same thing: “You see the distress we are in, how Jerusalem lies in waste, and the gates thereof are burned with fire. Come, let us build up the wall of Jerusalem, that we be no more a reproach” Nehemiah 2:17.
Unfortunately, Nehemiah was not the only one unhappy. Once his building project got started, he faced opposition from local leaders who considered Jerusalem a “rebellious city” and did not want it restored. “It grieved them exceedingly that there was come a man to seek the welfare of the children of Israel” Nehemiah 2:10. Soon, these enemies began mocking the effort. “They laughed us to scorn, and despised us” Nehemiah 2:19. Nehemiah told them ‘Laugh all you want, but God is going to bless us’ v.20.
Soon the work began in earnest.
“Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they built the Sheep Gate … Next to him, the men of Jericho built, and next to them, Zaccur the son of Imri built. Now the sons of Hassenaah built the Fish Gate … Next to them Meremoth … made repairs. And next to him Meshullam … made repairs. And next to him, Zadok also made repairs. Moreover, next to him the Tekoites made repairs … Joiada … repaired the Old Gate … Next to them … the men of Gibeon made repairs … Next to them, Uzziel … made repairs. And next to him Hananiah, one of the perfumers, made repairs … Next to them Rephaiah made repairs. Next to them Jedaiah … made repairs opposite his house. And next to him Hattush … made repairs … Next to him Shallum … made repairs, he and his daughters” Nehemiah 3:1-12.
Do you see a theme emerging like a chorus? Next to him. Next to him. Next to him. Soon Nehemiah adds the phrase ‘After him,’ which means the same thing. These people were neighbors, each working alongside the other.
“Shallum … repaired the Fountain Gate … After him Nehemiah … made repairs … After him the Levites carried out repairs … Next to him Hashabiah … carried out repairs … After him … Next to him … After him … After him … After him … After them … After them … After him … After him … After him … After him … After him … After him …” Nehemiah 3:15-31.
When Jerusalem needed its walls rebuilt, the people did not wait for professionals to do it. Volunteers working side-by-side made it happen. Similarly, when 2017’s Hurricane Harvey flooded thousands of homes in Houston, there were not enough water damage companies in the nation to muck out all the houses. Volunteers had to step up. When the Guadalupe River flooded on July 4, 2025, the people of the Texas Hill Country could not complete rescue, recovery, and rebuilding efforts without help from other communities. Volunteers had to step up.
Imagine the joy of being a part of rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem. You would point that wall out to your family and friends for generations.
Similarly, when I joined teams mucking out houses after Hurricane Harvey, it brought me so much joy. My parents taught Sunday school for four decades—and I will forever be so proud of them for that. There is great joy in putting your shoulder to the weight and pushing forward for God’s kingdom—and it’s even better when you can do it alongside other believers. It is such a privilege to work next to him … next to him … next to him.
Do you like teamwork? Do you want to be a part of something greater than yourself? Step up. Volunteer. Get involved in the work of God’s Kingdom! It will bring you so much joy!
AΩ.
I often think of and sometimes mention the acronym RAMPS. It is not enough to READ God’s Word, APPLY God’s Word, MEMORIZE God’s Word, and PRAY God’s Word. We need to SHARE God’s Word. Get involved in the local church. so you can find ways to share the word!
Household Words: 