In Nehemiah one we notice that he was the Cup Bearer to the king. I'm not exactly sure what this position entailed but it certainly meant that he was close to, and trusted by, the king. It must have taken years of background history for him to become established at the Cup Bearer's position.
He was close enough that the king noticed Nehemiah was troubled and sad (chapter two). For you, this is like President Obama personally being concerned about you, and wanting to know why you are troubled. It would mean you had that kind of high-flying job, which almost everyone else doesn't.
The whole book ends up with Nehemiah going back to Israel and rebuilding the wall, making the defenseless defensible. But he was a CUP BEARER, for crying out loud! He had no credentials for being a General, or Governor, or Architect, or Contractor.
What this shows us is that we can do a lot more than others believe we can do, or that we ourselves think we can to.
