People who kill time and waste opportunities create problems for themselves. "They're irresponsible!" we complain. On the other hand, some people encounter problems because they are over-responsible. They say to themselves, "If I don't do it, no one will. Even if others would do it, they wouldn't get it right." This attitude has been called "the perfectionist's myth," and those who live it are labeled "exhausted martyrs."

Perhaps you know someone like this. Perhaps it's you.

Exodus 18 describes Moses as a dedicated, over-responsible person. Day after day he was the sole judge of the people and their countless questions. His father-in-law Jethro said, "This thing is too much for you; you are not able to perform it by yourself" (v.18). He advised Moses to concentrate on teaching. He said he should judge only big problems and appoint reliable men to judge smaller matters (vv.19-22). "If you do this thing," Jethro concluded, "and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure" (v.23).

Are you exhausted because you've been trying to do everything by yourself? Ask God for wisdom and the strength to do what He wants you to do. Don't try to do it all yourself. Then you too "will be able to endure."  — Joanie Yoder