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What on Earth Am I Here For?
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Wednesday, September 10, 2003
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, Thank You for the opportunity to serve You through serving others. I pray that You will fill we with Your Holy Spirit that I may be bold and confident in sharing the Good News of Your Son, Jesus in all I do. Let others see that the good works I do are not of my doing, but that they come from You. Bring strength and healing to those who are suffering today, and draw many people to Yourself through the words and actions of Your people throughout the world. I pray especially for full-time Christian workers today, that You will strengthen them and give them the perseverance to complete the tasks for, which You have called them. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.
Bible Verses*
Exodus 18:13-27
13The next day, Moses sat as usual to hear the people’s complaints against each other. They were lined up in front of him from morning till evening.
14When Moses’ father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, “Why are you trying to do all this alone? The people have been standing here all day to get your help.”
15Moses replied, “Well, the people come to me to seek God’s guidance. 16When an argument arises, I am the one who settles the case. I inform the people of God’s decisions and teach them his laws and instructions.”
17“This is not good!” his father-in-law exclaimed. 18“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. 19Now let me give you a word of advice, and may God be with you. You should continue to be the people’s representative before God, bringing him their questions to be decided. 20You should tell them God’s decisions, teach them God’s laws and instructions, and show them how to conduct their lives. 21But find some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as judges over groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten. 22These men can serve the people, resolving all the ordinary cases. Anything that is too important or too complicated can be brought to you. But they can take care of the smaller matters themselves. They will help you carry the load, making the task easier for you. 23If you follow this advice, and if God directs you to do so, then you will be able to endure the pressures, and all these people will go home in peace.”
24Moses listened to his father-in-law’s advice and followed his suggestions. 25He chose capable men from all over Israel and made them judges over the people. They were put in charge of groups of one thousand, one hundred, fifty, and ten. 26These men were constantly available to administer justice. They brought the hard cases to Moses, but they judged the smaller matters themselves.
27Soon after this, Moses said good-bye to his father-in-law, who returned to his own land.
Reflecting on Ministry
Have you ever felt that you were the only one who was seeking to do God’s work in a particular situation? If so, what was the ultimate outcome?
Exploring Ministry
What was the “problem” in today’s Scripture? (18:13-18)
What solution did Jethro propose? Did it work? (18:19-27)
Understanding Ministry and My Purpose
What do we learn about ministry from the example of Moses and Jethro in today’s reading?
What is your ministry in the life of the body of Christ?
Applying Ministry to My Daily Life
In what area(s) of your life do you need to delegate some things in order to bring about a better situation for all involved.
Moses and Ministry
Moses’ situation was impossible. He literally tried to serve as the leader, counselor and judge for hundreds of thousands of people—all by himself! Ministry is serving God by serving others, and Moses certainly had his hands full with his ministry. But the problem was, as his father-in-law, Jethro, rightly pointed out that both he and the people were being worn out by Moses’ “method” of ministry. No one person is intended by God to do all the ministry among God’s people, whether the group consists of dozens of people or thousands. Moses could never hear the needs of everyone in Israel who had a problem, let alone address every situation. Jethro’s plan was a good plan as far as it went. Jethro urged Moses to call and equip leaders who could listen to the people, and make decision regarding the smaller matters, and leave only the big decisions to Moses. What is right about this process is that it calls for identifying and equipping additional leaders and sharing the ministry with the whole body rather than with one, individual member. What is missing is that Jethro’s plan is all human—in other words, he failed to take into account the Holy Spirit and God’s gifting in people’s lives. While Jethro’s solution did address many needs, and it was much more effective for ministry than Moses’ way, God later poured out His Spirit on seventy elders, so that they could help carry the burden of ministry—and be gifted in doing so! In our day, every believer is gifted by the Spirit, so every believer has a ministry. What is YOURS?
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