Moses replied, “Because the people come to me to get a ruling from God. When a dispute arises, they come to me, and I am the one who settles the case between the quarreling parties. I inform the people of God’s decrees and give them his instructions.” “This is not good!” Moses’ father-in-law exclaimed. “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.
Exodus 18:15-18 (NLT)
Moses was a pretty capable guy. He had been through a lot in his life and had a deep well of experience to draw from, but he was wiped out and he was struggling. The nation of Israel had been living in captive slavery for over 400 years and Moses was the person God chose to lead them out of slavery. Because of his role as THE leader, everyone brought their disputes and disagreements to Moses.
Most biblical scholars estimate that the crowd Moses led through the desert was around two million people, and Moses, alone, was the judge who settled all their problems. The people were getting frustrated having to wait in line for days (weeks? months?) to get their case heard and Moses was burning out quick. Imagine settling people’s disputes all day long, six days a week, for weeks and weeks on end. Moses didn’t think he had a choice in the matter. It was his job and he was going to see it through until it killed him. Then one day his father-in-law, Jethro, stopped by to visit, and gave Moses the best advice he could have ever gotten: “Stop.”
Now, Jethro went on to give him some wise counsel about restructuring, but it all started with, “Stop, this is not good.” As we are trying to navigate our way through life, some of the best guidance we can receive from the Lord might be, “Stop, what you are doing is not good.” I know we all have places to go and people to see, and life seems to get faster and faster every day. But when you’re lost, sometimes the best thing you can do is stop. Maybe that’s what the Psalms mean by, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
When I have gotten lost, whether on a highway or a hiking trail, one of the biggest mistakes I have made is to go faster. To hit the gas or turn my hike into a jog, thinking the faster I go, the sooner I’ll find my way. We are always wanting God to show us where to go and how to get there, but have you ever felt like the guidance God had to give you was, “Stop. Slow down. Be still and let Me be God. I want to lead you, but right now, you need to wait.” God’s delays are not denials. If we can trust God to direct our paths, we can also trust Him when He says stop
Have you ever felt like God said, “Stop,” when you were asking Him for direction? How did you react to that? How did it turn out?