Nose to the Grindstone
Most of us have heard the following expressions: “He‘s not afraid of hard work.” “Put some elbow grease on it.” “You‘re burnin‘ daylight.” “If you don‘t work, you don‘t eat.“ “Make hay while the sun shines.” “If you choose a career you love, you’ll never work a
day in your life.“

Work is a big part of life and, if we want to amount to anything, we
have to work in some fashion. It may not be punching a time clock on the production line, or working in the office 9 to 5, driving a big rig, or pushing cattle, but we all have some type of work to accomplish. Honestly, there’s no paycheck for a lot of the work we do — just the satisfaction of a job well done. Anybody can start a chore, but you have to put your nose to the grindstone to finish it with excellence.

In the Bible, we refer to Nehemiah as the weeping prophet, for when he was told that the remnant of Jews were in great trouble and shame, the wall of Jerusalem was broken down and the gates burned, he sat down and wept and mourned for days. He knew his people were defenseless against their enemies with no wall for protection. King Artaxerxes sent Nehemiah to Jerusalem as Governor of Judah and also Chief Construction Officer.
Nehemiah maintained a close relationship with God, and God gave him wisdom on how to accomplish the huge task of rebuilding the wall of Jerusalem.

After Nehemiah inspected the wall, he called the men together and basically told them, “Don’t be afraid, trust God and work like crazy.“ Before the construction began, the scripture tells us, “the people had a mind to work” (Nehemiah 4:6 ESV). A stouthearted
decision must be made before we start something or there’s a strong possibility we won’t stick with it when the going gets tough.

Nehemiah and the people prayed and partnered with God, therefore, He set a guard as a protection against their enemies day and night. Nehemiah writes, “I stationed the people by their clans, with their swords, their spears, and their bows. And I said to the nobles and to the officials and to the rest of the people,
‘Do not be afraid of them [enemies]. Remember the Lord, who is great and awesome, and fight for your brothers, your sons, your daughters, your wives, and your homes.’ When our enemies heard that God had frustrated their plan, we all returned to the wall, each to his work. From that day on, half of my servants worked on construction, and half held the spears, shields, bows, and coats of mail. Those who carried burdens were loaded in such
a way that each labored on the work with one hand and held his weapon with the other. And each of the builders had his sword strapped at his side while he built. So we labored at the work, and half of them held the spears from the break of dawn until the stars came out“ (Nehemiah 4:13-18,21 ESV). This formidable half-warrior/half-worker team was committed to build with a sword in one hand and a trowel in the other.

There are times when a believer’s job is to pray, trust, and wait. But the building of Jerusalem’s wall was not one of those times to kick back and see what God would do.

This was a time for God to see His people use their elbow grease. If they were determined to work, then He would take care of them. This construction was no walk in the park, but it was possible with God’s favor on His valiant crew. He protected them as they labored, and everyone had a part to play in this huge project which was completed in just 52 days.

The Key: Put your nose to the grindstone and God will protect it from getting skinned.

Since I began writing this column in April of 2021, the most common question I get is, “Why are we shrinking?”  Many people are quick the lay the blame on any number of local factors, but in my first column, I cited ten primary reasons from my research over the years, which are listed below:

1. Rapid industrialization during and after WWII

Small town America led the nation’s growth until 1941, when we ramped up the war effort.  Factories were built in large cities near a concentration of the supply of labor, and urbanism began.

2. Change in tax policies to promote manufacturing

With the need to build our war machine came tax incentives from Washington in the form of tax credits and accelerated depreciation to benefit primarily these large city manufacturers; this began the great tax transfer from small town earners to large city companies.  Additionally, the Federal Government is the largest employer in Kansas City. How many Federal workers do you know who live in Bourbon County?

3. Agricultural efficiencies and the drop of ag employment

Most of us are aware that it takes far fewer agricultural workers to produce a crop and manage a herd.  Ag employment per acre has dropped precipitously over the last 75 years.

4. Rapid transportation: planes, trains and automobiles

Our mobile society makes it much easier for our young people to seek employment is faraway places, primarily big cities near transportation centers.

5. Global competition created the need for economy of scale

Due to technology, the world is much smaller now, making it easier for companies to go nationwide/global.  To create efficiencies, industries have consolidated, as evidenced by the over 15,000 banks 40 years ago, condensed to 4,519 at yearend 2020.

6. Increase in regulation

New government regulations, such as the Patriot Act, have dramatically increased the cost of doing business, crowding out mom and pop companies in small towns.

7. Advent of “Big Box” retailers

Wal-Mart.  Need I say more?

8. Access to technology/online shopping

The Internet has revolutionized the world, and retail has paid the price.  This has disproportionately impacted small town America.

9. Loss of desire for community

We are devolving from a relationship culture to an entertainment culture.  Give me experiences!  There is nothing to do here!  We are becoming human doings, instead of human beings.

10. Entertainment culture

Who are our highest paid citizens?  It is those who entertain us, who seldom live in small towns.  In a capitalist society, money flows toward what we value.

There are more, but these are megatrends that have strangled small towns, through no fault of their own.  Other than the energy sector areas, the trends are impacting small towns universally and disproportionally.

In many ways, we are a victim circumstances we cannot control.  We can put our best foot forward and distinguish ourselves from other small towns around us who suffer the same fate.  There is no quit in me in an effort to preserve the lifestyle I grew up with