9. Grow Others
We ascertained in the previous lesson that King Solomon was a generous man. He gave to God and to man. But his giving was not limited to physical gifts. King Solomon took time to ensure that he empowered others.
But Solomon did not make slaves of any of the Israelites; they were his fighting men, his government officials, his officers, his captains, and the commanders of his chariots and charioteers. They were also the chief officials in charge of Solomon’s projects—550 officials supervising those who did the work.
1 Kings 9:22-23(NIV)
King Solomon elicited forced labor to build the temple of the Lord and his palace ( 1 Kings 9:15-21). Rather than reduce the Israelites to the level of slaves, and in so doing establish his throne in fear, King Solomon empowered them. He wanted them to do well, so he hired them and made them supervise those who were carrying out the hard labor.
This appears to be a recurring theme in his life. He was always looking for an excuse to improve the lives of others, as we have seen in the previous lessons.
Perhaps his need to empower others was due to the fact that he understood that the gifts of the Lord that he had received (wisdom and wealth), were not meant to serve him solely, but were for the service of others.
The words of the Teacher, son of David, king of Jerusalem:
Ecclesiastes 1:1 ( NIV)
This is the manner in which King Solomon opened the book of Ecclesiastes. He took upon himself the responsibility of teaching others. In so doing, he continues to grow others to this very day through his teachings. We continue to be empowered by his wisdom.
Not only was the Teacher wise, but also he imparted knowledge to the people. He pondered and searched out and set in order many proverbs. The Teacher searched to find just the right words, and what he wrote was upright and true. The words of the wise are like goads, their collected sayings like firmly embedded nails-given by one Shepherd.
Ecclesiastes 12:9-11( NIV)
Your Turn
King Solomon consciously used his position, wisdom and wealth to elevate others. As long as you are breathing, you too have the same opportunity to purposefully grow those around you. How can you use your life’s experience, your influence (no matter how small it may be) to impact someone’s life for eternity?
Are you a parent, an aunt, an uncle….you have the opportunity to consciously grow the next generation.
Today I challenge you to look around you and identify just 1 person that you shall commit yourself to growing.