Working Together 一起做工
Dexu Xia
If you do this and God so commands, you will be able to stand the strain, and all these people will go home satisfied. Exodus 18:23
Joe worked more than twelve hours a day, often without taking breaks. Starting a charitable business demanded so much time and energy that he had little left to offer his wife and children when he got home. After the toll of chronic stress landed Joe in the hospital, a friend offered to organize a team to help him. Though he dreaded giving up control, Joe knew he couldn’t keep up his current pace. He agreed to trust his friend—and God—as he delegated responsibilities to the group of people they chose together. A year later, Joe admitted that the charity and his family could never have prospered if he’d refused the help God had sent him.
God didn’t design people to thrive without the support of a loving community. In Exodus 18, Moses led the Israelites through the wilderness. He tried serving God’s people as a teacher, a counselor, and a judge all on his own. When his father-in-law visited, he offered Moses advice: “You and these people who come to you will only wear yourselves out,” said Jethro. “The work is too heavy for you; you cannot handle it alone” (Exodus 18:18). He encouraged Moses to share the workload with faithful people. Moses accepted help and the whole community benefited.
When we trust that God works in and through all His people as we work together, we can find true rest.
How can you trust God by asking for help or offering help to someone in leadership this week? How has He provided you the support of trustworthy people?
Father God, thank You for never asking me to handle life without Your help or the support of others
你若这样行，上帝也这样吩咐你，你就能受得住，这百姓也都平平安安归回他们的住处。—出埃及记18章23节
绍文每天工作超过12个小时，而且经常不休息。开展慈善事业需要大量的时间和精力，他回到家里，也没什么时间和精神与妻儿共聚。后来绍文因不堪长期的压力而病倒住院，有位朋友提议组织一个团队来协助他。绍文虽不放心交出管理权，但却明白自己早已不堪负荷。于是，他选择相信他的朋友和上帝，并与朋友共同挑选一组人员且将工作交给他们。一年后，绍文承认如果拒绝上帝为他提供的协助，他的慈善事业不可能成功，也不会有美满的家庭。
上帝显然没有要求我们独自奋斗，拒绝群体的爱心扶持。出埃及记18章记载，摩西带领以色列人行经旷野，并尝试独自担任上帝子民的教师、辅导员及审判长。当摩西的岳父叶忒罗来访时，他建议摩西说：“你和这些百姓必都疲惫，因为这事太重，你独自一人办理不了”（出埃及记18章18节）。他又鼓励摩西拣选忠心的人，并与他们共同分担这些工作。摩西接受帮助使整个群体都获益良多。
若我们相信在大家一起工作时，上帝会改变并使用祂所有的子民，我们就能得着真正的休息。
这周内，你如何藉由寻求帮助或协助某个领袖来表明你对上帝的信靠？
上帝如何透过值得信赖的人来协助你呢？