Narrative Lectionary Key Verse for Today
“[Jethro said,] ‘Now listen to me. I will give you counsel, and God be with you! You should represent the people before God, and you should bring their cases before God; teach them the statutes and instructions and make known to them the way they are to go and the things they are to do.’”
NL Daily Devotion for Saturday, October 8, 2022
by R. M. Fergus, Clergy Stuff
Moses was a lot of things, but apparently an administrator wasn’t one of them. Yesterday I wrote about how prophets need help to do God’s work, and here’s Jethro stepping up to do just that.
You see, Moses is kind of hung up on the idea that only he can speak for God. He’s got that classic people-pleaser over-committer vibe that leaves so many people in faith communities burned out and bitter. He’s trying to judge the everyday disputes of the entire company of Israel by himself.
Thank goodness for Jethro. “Are you nuts? We get it—you’re God’s guy right now. But what you’re doing is absolutely impossible and no one wants you having a nervous breakdown while they’re still wandering in the desert!”
With hardly a thought, Jethro breaks down exactly how to distribute power (all to men, of course) among lots of people who can easily handle the little things, leaving only the really big, important stuff for Moses to deal with. And each of those individuals settling lower-level disputes, if well-instructed, can be counted on to do as God wishes in their deliberations.
Our pastors have a lot on their plates. It’s so easy to want to turn to them to deal with every little detail of community life. But the fact is that it’s community life, and God is calling all of us to serve one another in that community. So we take on different roles from higher-level leadership to mission critical work that rarely gets noticed. In every case, if we are doing it with a heart for love and service, we are equipped to do God’s will in all we do. That way, our pastors are free to handle the big stuff.
How am I of love and service in my faith community?
