Lent: A Drawing a Day...Day 2

jethro

pastel, gold paint, watercolor on black paper

12 7/8" x 12 7/8"

"The thing you are doing is not right; you will surely wear yourself out, and these people as well.  For the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone."  (Exodus 18:17-18)

Jethro, Moses father-in-law, enters the Exodus story a couple times.  I like him.  He seems wise in a way that keeps a healthy distance from all the hustle of Moses and Zipporah leading the Hebrews out of slavery and all.  And it's a good thing he enters when he does.  Moses is working too hard, he's taking the "messiah complex" a bit too far (his name comes from the word for "messiah," which doesn't help the matter).  Jethro kindly and wisely advises Moses with the words above.

We've all probably heard words like this more than we'd like to admit, but it' worth considering anew the idea that wearing ourselves out is a great way to wear everyone else out.  Even our "good" work, or our motives for doing that work, can be an idol.

In this text, Jethro comes as the first "leadership guru," and he begins his counsel with the call to rest...and then offers some stellar advise.  Moses, then (much to his credit) humbly takes that advise.

We cannot go it alone, caring for ourselves is a communal act which spills over into the lives of those around us.

Myrtle Tree

I recently wrote in letter form the story of our daughter Hadassah’s birth and how she got her name as she was the Star Student in her 2nd grade class.  I won’t share all the details, but I have continued to meditate not only on my daughter’s life but also the story of Hadassah in light of the Advent season and the coming celebration of the Incarnation.  Below are my brief thoughts about it from that letter edited a bit for this post:

Hadassah was Esther’s Hebrew name.  In the book bearing her Persion name it says, “He (Modecai) was bringing up Hadassah…”  That’s the only place where her Hebrew name is mentioned.  Now most folks know that Esther means “star” but not as many know that Hadassah means “myrtle tree.”  Which kinda sounds funny when you first hear it doesn’t it?  So when the name came to us, my wife and I wanted to learn more about what it meant and so I discovered that the hadas or myrtle is used all over the place in Jewish communities to this day.  It is used commonly in weddings, during the festival of booths, and mentioned in many other stories in the Bible.  In a nutshell, “Hadassah” symbolizes redemption, restoration, healing. 

But I’ve always been curious as to the infrequency of Esther’s Hebrew name.  Why did the woman in the story of Esther have two names?  Well, stars are great things…I like them a lot.  In fact, most of us would rather be a star.  But for some reason the author wanted to make sure we knew (through this stark infrequency) that redemption came from a God who is near to us, not far out in outer space (although God is there, too).  That’s a comforting thought.

A simple concept that we do well to consider during Advent.  The God of our redemption is near.  Come thou long expected one…