Don't Do It All Alone

The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?”

Moses answered him, “Because the people come to me to seek God’s will. Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God’s decrees and instructions.”

Moses’ father-in-law replied, “What you are doing is not good. You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people’s representative before God and bring their disputes to him. Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you. If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied.”

Moses listened to his father-in-law and did everything he said. Eodus 18:13-24

 

We can gain great insight from this passage on handling responsibility as we minister to other people. Jethro was very wise in his observation of  and recommendations for the situation his son-in-law was caught up in. He could see that Moses was trying to do everything by himself. It seemed like Moses had placed upon himself the burden of responsibility for all the people.

 

Sometimes we can get caught up in our responsibilities and think that we are indespensible or have to handle everything ourselves. Isn't it wonderful to think about how God has designed the Body of Christ to work together. He has given each of us unique gifts and abilities to use as we serve Him and others.

 

Jethro recommended that Moses delegate some of the responsibilities to other men and when he did this, the work got accomplished, everyone felt ministered to and Moses was able to continue to lead the people effectively.

 

Are we holding onto responsibilities and not allowing someone else to share the load? Let's strive to function like the Body of Christ as we serve one another!