Happy Year Folks!
Regards,
Antoine E. Hall
Blog: http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." - James 1:22
I hope that you all had a Merry Christmas as well! It feels good to be able to jump back into writing, so without delay, I want to go to Exodus 18:13-22. It is a little lengthy, but work with me. There, it says:
(13) The next day Moses took his seat to serve as judge for the people, and they stood around him from morning till evening. (14) When his father-in-law saw all that Moses was doing for the people, he said, "What is this you are doing for the people? Why do you alone sit as judge, while all these people stand around you from morning till evening?" (15) Moses answered him, "Because the people come to me to seek God's will. (16) Whenever they have a dispute, it is brought to me, and I decide between the parties and inform them of God's decrees and instructions." (17) Moses' father-in-law replied, "What you are doing is not good. (18) You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out. The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone. (19) Listen now to me and I will give you some advice, and may God be with you. You must be the people's representative before God and bring their disputes to him. (20) Teach them his decrees and instructions, and show them the way they are to live and how they are to behave. (21) But select capable men from all the people—men who fear God, trustworthy men who hate dishonest gain—and appoint them as officials over thousands, hundreds, fifties and tens. (22) Have them serve as judges for the people at all times, but have them bring every difficult case to you; the simple cases they can decide themselves. That will make your load lighter, because they will share it with you.
You know what? I probably needed to read and meditate on this verse all while growing up and probably to this day. How many of us try to do things all by ourselves? After all, as American's we pride ourselves on getting to the point where we are independent and can do it all alone. Independence is like a mark that says, "I did it and I can do it all by myself!". This is good and there is nothing wrong with independence, until it gets in the way of getting help when you need it.
It is hard to go back to ask people for help when you've portrayed the role that "you got it". Sometimes, it can even be a hard pill to swallow, but if you will just step outside yourself to see yourself, you'd realize that you cannot do everything alone. As in verse 18, "...you will only wear yourselves out." If you are use to going at it alone that is fine, but keep in mind that you have to be able to recognize when you need help to "make your load lighter".
If someone offers help, it is probably because they see something that you do not see. Re-evaluate your situation and see where you may need help. After all, the help that comes may be the bridge you need to get over your current road block.
Be easy folks and have a great Monday!
Regards,
Antoine E. Hall
Blog: http://toinebo.blogspot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/AntoineHall
"Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says." - James 1:22
