Leadership and Delegation

Exodus 18: 13-24

Moses would judge people from morning until evening. Jethro, Moses’ father in law, observed this and told him that this activity was “not good.” He told him that it was too much responsibility for Moses to handle all by himself. He warned him that he would “surely wear away” if he continued this way. He counseled him to teach other’s the “ordinances and laws,” and that he must show them how to do the work and make them “able men”. He told him that he needed to delegate the work to others who would help him judge the people. The appointed judges would have the ability to judge smaller matters, but greater matters would be brought to Moses. Jethro then told Moses in verse 23, “If thou shalt do this thing, and God command thee so, then thou shalt be able to endure, and all this people shall also go to their place in peace.” This would make Moses load lighter and in return everyone would benefit from it.

How does this story relate to us?

Corinthians 12: 14, “For the body is not one member, but many.” Just like our bodies have different members that contribute to make our bodies whole we too are individual members of our church, job, or home, and we each have an important role. We are all essential in one way or another. At times we may feel like we have a lot in our plates, and no matter how many hours we spend trying to complete them they don’t seem to go away. That’s when we need to follow Jethro’s counsel to Moses, and delegate the work to others and make leaders of them. By sharing our responsibilities with others we communicate trust, and care for others. We allow others to grow by having them contribute, and we help them to become responsible leaders. This is not always an easy task to do, but when we take the time to prayerfully seek others who can help us, our load not only gets lighter, but others grow from it as well.