Meet Moses. I call him the adopted grandson of King Pharaoh.

Though he was “rescued” from the river by the King’s daughter and raised in the palace as a prince, his God-given purpose and destiny was to deliver the people of Israel from slavery and oppression. It was already in him, because the gift and callings of God cannot be thwarted and when the Almighty places a demand of service from you, He ensures that you are well-equipped for that office. 

Moses had a default dislike for oppression; so when he witnessed a fight between an Egyptian and a Hebrew, he intervened and killed the oppressor. Again, he witnessed a disagreement between two Hebrew men and he cautioned them, because he understood that oppression was not something to be seen or mentioned among brothers. It wasn’t a surprise, therefore, that when the time was right, God visited him and gave him the mantle to rescue His people from their oppressors and lead them into the Promised Land. After much back-and-forth between God and Moses, he accepted this mantle, and accompanied by his brother, Aaron, he set out on the rescue mission; again, because when the Almighty places a demand of service from you, He stands by you and supports you so that you do not fail. 

The rescue mission was a success as Moses, under God’s divine guidance, led the Israelites out of Egypt and the journey into the Promised Land began. This time, Moses had the responsibility to provide leadership to the people of Israel, ensuring their needs were met, protecting them from enemies, and even settling their disputes. All day, he will sit as judge, listening to their complaints against one another and doing his best to resolve them. He continued this practice for a while until Jethro, his father-in-law, paid him a visit, observed the trend and decided to have a conversation with Moses. 

“What are you really accomplishing here? Why are you trying to do all this alone?”, he asked Moses.

Moses responded, “because the people come to me to inquire of God. When a dispute arises, they come to me and I am the one who settles the case between the quarrelling parties and I give them God’s instructions.”

Jethro replied, “this is not good! You are going to wear yourself and the people out. This job is too heavy a burden for you to handle yourself. Now listen to me, and let me give you a word of advice. You should continue to be the people’s representative before God, bringing their disputes to Him. Teach them God’s decrees, and give them instructions. Show them how to conduct their lives, BUT select some capable, honest men who fear God and hate bribes. Appoint them as leaders over groups and let them be available to solve the people’s common disputes, while they bring the major cases to you. Let the leaders decide the smaller matters as this will help you carry the load and make the task easier for you. If you follow this advice, as the Lord leads you, you will be able to endure all the pressures and these people will go home in peace.”

Moses listened to his father-in-law’s instructions and saved himself from burnout. 

You see, Moses was the one called, anointed and graced by God for this assignment. He was the one privileged to have conversations with God and hear directly from Him concerning the Israelites. It was his divine purpose. He was the “Anointed One” but he understood the importance of an elder’s wisdom.  

Jethro was not the one called for this specific assignment but he had something that Moses needed to succeed as a leader. 

• Jethro had the wisdom that came with age and lived experience. He had the privilege of experiencing a bit of life before Moses. 
• Jethro had lived as a husband, father and head of a family. He was familiar with a style of leadership that was still new to Moses.
• Jethro had lived (and at that time, he was still living) as a priest. He was familiar with the demands of the priestly role and he had learnt how to thrive and keep his sanity in the midst of the pressure.

The wisdom of elders. 

We cannot live without it. It doesn’t matter how much we know or think we know. Wisdom is more than receiving formal education and trainings. It is more than what we read on the internet. It is beyond the call and the anointing. There is a version of wisdom that comes with the number of years that a person has lived on earth, the experience they have had, the paths they have walked on, the adversities that they have overcome and the victories they have recorded. This kind of wisdom is domiciled in the hearts of the people we know and call our elders and no matter how much the world evolves and things change, we cannot ignore the value of sitting at our elders’ feet. 

One thing I am grateful to God for is that I was raised in a culture that values the wisdom and authority of elders. My culture taught me to respect, honour and listen to them and over the years, I have learnt that if you are surrounded by the right elders in your life, your mistakes will be few. 

Learn to sit at the feet of the elders. There is something they know that you don’t. 

Learn to sit at the feet of your elders. The conversations are life-changing.