Build Your Section
Build Your Section
Barry's Bureau | Inspired by Dr. Richard Price's sermon at Schrader Lane Church of Christ
In this Priceless Lessons message from Nehemiah 3, Dr. Richard Price reminds us that God notices every act of faithful service, no matter how small, unseen, or unpolished it looks to everyone else. Discover why your name, your gifts, and the specific "section" God has placed in front of you matter more than the applause of the crowd.
Picture a massive stone wall going up around an ancient, broken-down city. The official building record lists more than thirty names — priests, goldsmiths, perfumers, merchants, rulers — most of them otherwise forgotten by history. No stage. No spotlight. Just a section of wall and a job to finish. Have you ever wondered if your work matters when no one outside your own household is watching? Dr. Richard Price says Heaven is never confused about who showed up, even when the crowd forgets your name.
The passage at the center of this message is Nehemiah 3, the often-skipped chapter that simply lists who repaired what section of Jerusalem's broken wall. It reads like a roll call until you realize what it is actually recording. Dr. Price put it this way: "We often celebrate the structure, but God records the service. We announce the progress, but God knows who prayed, who carried, who stayed." The central truth of this message is simple and convicting: God does not measure your life by how famous your name became, but by how faithfully you built the section He placed in front of you. Whether you are eighteen or eighty, established or just starting out, your name and your work matter to Him.
Your Name Means You Matter to God
It is easy to assume significance requires a platform. Dr. Price challenges that head-on: "You don't need to become famous to become faithful. You don't need a large platform to make a lasting impact." The world asks, "Did it advance my name?" The kingdom of God asks something different: "Was God pleased?" Those are not the same measuring sticks, and confusing them will quietly starve your faith.
Dr. Price points to Timothy as proof that youth and obscurity are never disqualifications. Paul called the young Timothy to be an example in four categories: speech, conduct, love, and faith (1 Timothy 4:12). That charge still stands for every believer who has ever felt overlooked — especially young professionals, ages eighteen to thirty-five: "Do not allow the pressure of building a career to convince you that you have no spiritual contribution to make until your professional life is settled." Some of the most important work God will ever do, He does through people in exactly that season of life. Waiting for a permission you already have is not humility. It is delay.
You Don't Have to Be a Professional — Just Faithful
Look closely at who actually built the wall in Nehemiah 3, and you will not find a construction crew — you'll find a priest, a goldsmith, a perfumer, a merchant, a ruler. None of them were professional builders. Dr. Price frames their real qualification this way: "The question was not, 'Is this my profession?' The question was, 'Is this my responsibility?'"
That distinction changes everything. Musical giftedness, organizational ability, cultural awareness — Dr. Price names these as gifts that "can all be placed in service to God." The church does not need the next generation to merely imitate the last generation's methods; it needs them to bring their own God-given gifts to the work. That cuts both ways: established leaders carry real responsibility to give young people meaningful assignments, not busywork.
But diverse gifts are never a substitute for faithfulness. As Dr. Price warns, "Nehemiah 3 is not a talent show. It is coordinated, disciplined service" — consistency, humility, preparation, accountability, and a willingness to be corrected. Whatever gift you carry, faithfulness is what finishes the section.
Build What Is in Front of You
Notice how the wall got built: one group repaired the sheep gate, another the fish gate, another the valley gate, another simply "the section opposite their house." No single leader could have completed it alone. The assignment was divided into faithful, manageable sections. You do not have to build the whole wall. You have to be faithful with the section God has placed in front of you.
That principle is intensely personal. Dr. Price asks the question plainly: What needs rebuilding in your prayer life? What needs strengthening in your character, healing in your family, discipline restored in your habits? "It's easier to critique distant problems than to address the brokenness across from your own house." Colossians 3:23 settles the standard: "Whatever we do, we should work at it with all our heart, as work for the Lord."
Nehemiah 3:5 records a painful exception: the nobles of Tekoa refused to bend their shoulders to the work. They had influence without involvement. But their refusal did not stop their neighbors — by verse 27, the Tekoites who did show up had finished their section and started another. Someone else's refusal is never your excuse for disobedience. And in case anyone still believes service is beneath them, Christ settled that question permanently: though divine, He humbled Himself, took the form of a servant, and became obedient to the point of death on a cross. No assignment of service is beneath a follower of Christ.
Let Your Legacy Meet the Next Generation
We do not have to choose between legacy and possibility. Dr. Price reminded Schrader Lane that its own hundred-and-eight-year history "is not a museum display." The previous generation built a section and handed the work forward, and "we honor them best not simply by admiring what they built, but continuing faithfully where their section meets ours." The next generation is not here to erase the story; it is here to enter it. The mature generation is not here to block the future; it is here to enable it. The church needs both the wisdom of those who have walked with God for decades and the courage of those asking what obedience looks like right now.
That is not theory at Schrader Lane — it is Sunday morning. Dr. Price points to the church's ushering and security ministries as living proof, singling out Brother Jenkins, who brings a quiet, Xerox-manager level of excellence to his post, complete with attendance data and multi-year trend reports, "bringing dignity and a skill set" to his assignment while faithfully caring for his wife.
"I will not despise my gift. I will not compete with the builder next to me. I will not allow another person's refusal to cancel my faithfulness."
5 Ways to Build What Is in Front of You
- Name your section. Identify one specific thing that needs rebuilding in your life right now — your prayer life, your character, your relationships, or your discipline.
- Stop waiting for "someday." If you're a young professional, do not wait until your career is settled to use your spiritual gifts.
- Inventory your gifts. Organizational skill, music, hospitality, cultural insight — name what God gave you and place it in service to the church.
- Reach across generations. If you're seasoned, mentor someone younger. If you're younger, receive it and build alongside those who came before you.
- Refuse the excuse. Do not let someone else's refusal to serve become your justification for standing still.
Listen / Watch / Learn More
Want the full message in Dr. Price's own words? Watch "Build Your Section" from the Nehemiah: Building What Matters series at Schrader Lane Church of Christ. Then test what you learned with the Priceless Lessons quiz and study game, and explore more sermon reflections in the Priceless Lessons series on Barry's Bureau.
So here is the question Dr. Price leaves us with: Where is your section of the wall, and have you actually shown up to build it? Not someday, not once your career or your schedule settles down — today.
Take your place. Build your section. Leave a comment and tell us what part of the wall God is calling you to build this week, and share this post with someone who needs to hear it.
Join us for worship at Schrader Lane Church of Christ or visit BarrysBureau.org for more resources.
Priceless Lessons from Dr. Price
Build Your Section
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