Exodus_18

Scripture

 

‭Exodus‬ ‭18:18‬ ‭NLT

 

“You’re going to wear yourself out—and the people, too. This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle all by yourself.”

 

Observation-What does it say?

 

Moses’ father-in-law Jethro, visits Moses and the Israelites as they stay in the wilderness. Jethro celebrates with Moses. They celebrate all the wonderful things God has done for them (rescuing them from the hands of the Egyptians). Jethro sees the great leader his son-in-law Moses is becoming, but also observed that there is way too much responsibility that Moses is carrying. He fears that not only will it burn Moses out, but it will also frustrate the people, because they are not getting the prompt relief they are seeking from Moses’ decisions.  He has so much on his plate. So he gives Moses some advice. Jethro tells Moses he should find good, responsible, and respectable leaders he can entrust to help him with his daily tasks. Jethro tells Moses he should entrust these men to help him deal with the lesser issues, and the bigger concerns should still be brought to him. So Moses took his father-in-law’s advice in hopes of relieving some of the extra pressures of his plate.

 

Understanding-What does it mean?

 

A great leader needs a great supporting cast in order to succeed.

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Living life as a Christ-Follower is hard enough. Being put in a leadership position as a Christ-Follower is even harder. But trying to do it all by yourself?!. Well, that’s just crazy!

 

Moses was given a great responsibility to lead God’s people.

But this load that Moses was carrying was starting to take its toll. Because of his great relationship with God, people looked to Moses for guidance and wisdom...for EVERYTHING! If this was going to work out for Moses and the Israelites, Moses was going to need help. Moses was going to need to disciple others to help him with these daily tasks. He was going to need to REACH out amongst the people, RECRUIT them into God’s Kingdom, RESOURCE these people with the proper tools and techniques to do things according to God, and RELEASE them into their ministry. They needed to work together as a team if this was going to work!

 

Just like in any sport, I don’t care how great one individual is, they are going to need help from their teammates in order to succeed. As great as Michael Jordan was, he was nothing until Scottie Pippen, his coach Phil Jackson, and the rest of his team stepped up and helped him win 6 championships. Even a great actor needs help along the way. He needs a great writer, director, and co-stars if the movie is going to have a shot of any success. The same thing goes for us. If we are going to have any shot of success, we’re going to need some help. By discipling others and being on the same page (of building God’s Kingdom), and working together as a team, we can lighten the load for each other’s burdens, and thus give us more energy to serve our desired ministries with more passion!

 

Life Application

 

Disciple someone today!

 

Look for someone to disciple. Ask God for guidance, for Him to reveal to you, and instill in your heart someone you can disciple. Meet on a regular basis (whether once a week or every other week or even once a month). Do life together. Share your struggles, triumphs, and pray for one another. Work together in ministry and help build God’s Kingdom by multiplying Christ Followers everywhere!

 

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-Moses Gaddi