Great Coaching Questions From The Life Of Nehemiah

Guest Post By Rainer Kunz

Nehemiah is the 16th book in the Old Testament and is approximately 20 pages. For a quick overview please click here.

Great Coaching Questions From The Life Of Nehemiah

Lately, I’ve been reflecting on the life of Nehemiah.  He was a man who made a big impact.  Quite often, coaching clients will voice their desire to make an impact in their world.  When that opportunity arises in a coaching relationship, you can’t beat the following questions inspired by Nehemiah’s example.

First some background information.  Nehemiah was cupbearer to the King of Persia.  That made him the second most powerful man in the world at that time.  And yet, he desired to make an even greater impact for God.  That’s the foundation for a great coaching question:

“What kind of impact do you want to make in your world?”

When Nehemiah heard about God’s people in Jerusalem being depressed, discouraged, and defeated he took it seriously and prayed.  His heart was broken by the things that break the heart of God.  Nehemiah was dialed into God’s priorities and therefore he was sensitive to the true needs of others. This generates a second powerful coaching question:

“How sensitive are you to the needs of those around you?”

Nehemiah also models the value of a proven track record. We see that the king considered him so trustworthy he gave him the most reliable position in the kingdom – cup bearer. He entrusted his personal security to him. There was enormous confidence there because Nehemiah was dependable. That’s what we see in the lives of successful people who make an impact in their world.  As a skilled coach probes further, he or she may want to ask their client this question:

“How dependable are you?”

Lastly, the life of Nehemiah shows us that when the situation needed a leader, Nehemiah said, “I volunteer! Here am I, send me!”  He already had the job that everyone else wanted.  The problems of Jerusalem were a thousand miles away which was a two month journey across the desert on a camel.  And yet Nehemiah said, “I’ll go! I’m not even a contractor but I’ll go rebuild the wall!”   He was available. That creates another great question:

“How available are you?”

God chose Nehemiah even though he didn’t have the skills for that particular job. Why?  Because Nehemiah wanted to make an impact, was sensitive, dependable, and available.  God is not looking primarily for ability in the people whom He uses, as much as He’s looking for spiritual sensitivity, credibility, dependability, and availability. What a wonderful privilege coaches have to help people explore these crucial issues.

Rainer Kunz is a pastor in Washington State, teaches full time at the University of Phoenix and is also an adjunct professor at Brandman University, Vincennes University and Olympic College.  He is also a CoachNet.org Global partner and Director of Coaching for Forge Canada a growing network of leaders and churches in Canada. Helping individuals and organizations reach their goals is his calling.

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