Anyone can dig a hole and call it a fire pit.
Stack some stones. Make it symmetrical.
Post a photo. Feel accomplished.
But a fire pit without flame is just landscaping.
And a flame without fuel burns out fast.
Movements are the same.
Structure without people is cold.
People without structure scatter.
Nehemiah knew this.
He built the wall. But he didn’t stop there.
He looked around and asked: Where are the people?
He didn’t celebrate a finished framework.
He asked a deeper question: Who are we building this for?
Then he counted them. Appointed them.
Named roles before the city was full.
Because real leaders don’t wait for crowds.
They steward sparks.
The fire came because he prepared a place for it.
And the people stayed because there was warmth and direction.
Too many leaders today are obsessed with building fire pits.
The polished structure. The perfect model.
But no one wants to light the match.
Or worse—they expect a fire with no wood, no air, no effort.
If you build the pit but forget the flame, all you’ve done is decorate the ground.
If you chase the flame but refuse to build, all you’ve got is a wildfire.
Leadership is both.
Build the place.
Fuel the fire.
Tend the people.
And never forget:
You’re not building for the sake of building.
You’re building for the sake of those who will gather around the flame.