Intro: Welcome back to Orbit. Let’s get straight into today’s bible reading.
Bible: Exodus 18:14-18
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 round 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.
Thoughts: What a great and challenging passage for today! There’s something comforting in seeing that someone as formidable as Moses in the bible, also needed some help.
As we saw yesterday, Moses is quite an impressive guy! He’s mature enough to thank God even though he was camping in the wilderness with a people who were prone to complain. But along the line somewhere, Moses had taken on too much in his leadership of the people of Israel. Part of his job was to judge the arguments and disputes between people and pass on messages from God. That job description isn’t for the faint-hearted! I can imagine that it must have been emotionally draining! However, I wonder if Moses was so engrossed in his job that he just couldn’t see how much he was overworked!
It took a visit from his father-in-law, Jethro, notably an older, wiser person, to support him in changing his behaviour. Even though Moses was doing a good work, his father-in-law said, “This is not good!” That must have been quite difficult for Moses to hear. But Jethro was actually doing him a big favour in showing Moses that trying to do everything would soon catch up with him.
Let’s take a moment to consider this principle in our lives. Perhaps you’re active in your youth ministry or on sports teams or clubs at school, and you’re wrestling with a weight of expectation on your life. I want you to be encouraged today that God isn’t expecting you to do everything! Like Moses, it’s ok to get help, ask for help and share your tears, your prayer requests and responsibility with others. We might find that if we look honestly enough, our willingness to help others all the time and neglect ourselves, is actually more about us wanting to feel good about ourselves.
One of the claims of the Christian faith is that we are made right before God because of his grace, not what we can do ourselves. But if we’re honest, sometimes we behave as though being the first one to show up and the last one to leave, will make God love us just that little bit more. If this is you, let me use Jethro’s words to remind you: This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself!
Prayer: Lord, thank you for the strength and skills you’ve given me to lead and help others. I pray that you will help me to care for others from a genuine place in my heart, and not to feel ashamed to ask for help. Amen
Silence: There's now just a few moments of silence for you to pray, reflect on these ideas, or simply sit and be still.
Action: Here’s our practical step for today: Think of two or three people you trust as wiser and older mentors. Contact them to ask if they can see any areas of your life where you’re doing a little too much and could do with a break or some help.
Outro: Thanks so much for joining today’s Orbit! Tune in tomorrow for another reflection.
