Small Matters and Hard Cases

Scripture: And they judged the people at all times. Any hard case they brought to Moses, but any small matter they decided themselves. Exodus 18:26

Observation: Moses is quickly overloaded with the volume of his responsibility. His father-in-law tells him to select able men to help lead the people. Moses is able to focus his attention on what God truly needs from him through the power of delegation.

Application: The thing that caused me the most stress in 2010 was micromanaging. I enjoy having input, and it can be easy for me to drill down into a task far beyond where I am needed. This causes me stress as my time is quickly consumed with the urgent, and not spent on the important. Recently, I realized I need to set clear expectations, and then back away and see they are met, rather than being unclear, and continuing to give input. I do not have time for that.

Prayer: God, I need you to walk me through this in 2011. It may be a pride or control issue, or even a lack of faith. Help me to select able people, then clearly communicate with them my expectations, and then let them handle all the matters they can decide themselves. Show me the hard cases I should be devoting power and energy to. Please help me take a step forward in that today in the conversation I have planned.