The thing that you do is not good

“And it came to pass on the morrow, that Moses sat to judge the people: and the people stood by Moses from the morning unto the evening. And when Moses' father-in-law saw all that he did to the people, he said, What is this thing that thou doest to the people? why sittest thou thyself alone, and all the people stand by thee from morning unto even? And Moses said unto his father-in-law, Because the people come unto me to inquire of God: When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them known the statutes of God, and his laws. And Moses' father-in-law said unto him, The thing that thou doest is not good.” Exodus 18v13-17

Moses returned to the father-in-law he had lived with for so many years. It was a joyous reunion and the men spent time catching up on what had happened since their parting. Moses testimony caused Jethro to become a firm believer in Moses’ God and His power over all.

Jethro was a very practical man, a shepherd, and he perceived that there was a problem with Moses’ leadership. Every single situation was brought before Moses himself. He was spending all of his time, from morning to evening, dealing with even the most trivial matters. Jethro wisely suggested that Moses appoint men at various levels to govern the people, taking some of the load off himself. These were not to be just any men, but those who; fear God, truthful men, and who hated covetousness.

Neither Moses nor the nation would succeed if Moses continued trying to do all the work by himself. God’s work is to be shared. We must never think that we can only do the work. Pride can sometimes get in the way of sharing God’s work. There is much wisdom in the words of this humble shepherd. May we learn to apply these same lessons in our lives.