Category: Inspiration

Servant-hearted Leadership

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

In Parshat Devarim (Deut. 1:1–3:22), Moses begins his final address to Israel. It’s not just a retelling of events, he shares words shaped by concern, memory, and the ache of leadership. He recounts the wilderness journey, the rebellions, and the burden of judgment, not with bitterness; but with the language of fatherly and pastoral care.

“How can I bear by myself the weight and burden of you and your strife?” (Deut. 1:12).

This verse is not a complaint, it’s the cry of a leader who has carried his people in prayer, in grief, and in hope. Moses doesn’t distance himself from Israel’s failures; he brings them close, bearing them as a parent would a wayward child. In the wilderness, his intercessions softened divine anger. His rebukes were tempered with tears; and in his farewell, every word is wrapped in fatherly love.

Servant-hearted leadership (Matt. 20:26-27), as Moses examples, is often intercession. Leadership is not just administration, it’s advocating for the people you lead. Moses stood between the people and God, pleading on their behalf in moments of terrible failure. The heart of a true servant-leader bleeds with the struggles of the flock.

Moses does not gloss over the failures of the people, he recounts them to point to the Lord’s faithfulness and their growth. He is not shaming them, rather Moses uses memory as a reminder of the Lord’s mercy. 

Moses knew their complaints and rebellions, yet he still called them beloved (Deut. 7:6-8). The burdens in the wilderness were not easy, but those burdens were holy. A servant-leader loves not because it’s painless, but because it is a witness to how He has loved us (Ro. 5:8; cf. 1 Jn. 4:19). Servant-leadership is blessing packaged within the burden of life.  

As you lead … yes, as you lead … in ministry, family, or community, remember: love does not erase hardship, it sanctifies it. May we look to the teaching example of Moses and lead with: memory, mercy, and the unshakable commitment to bear the burdens of His people (Gal. 6:2). 

And even more so, may we be shaped in leadership by the love of Messiah Yeshua/Jesus, who said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep” (Jn. 10:11). He loved His own to the end (Jn. 13:1), and gave Himself willingly, offering not just leadership, but redemption, renewal and reconciliation. He led and made the way through the impossible for us, and He has called us into that way. 

May our servant-leadership be with faithfulness, not selfish ambition, leading by our identity in Him, not from position. Messiah stooped down to reach us. He carries our burdens. He serves and protects the flock. He then called, equipped, and released servant-leaders empowered by the Holy Spirit to make disciples. 

Leading like Christ is not a management strategy, it is redemptive work done to the glory of the Father (1 Cor. 10:31). His yoke is easy, not because the task is small, but because His heart is pure. As we labor unto Him, our servant-hearted leadership is expressed by intercession, burden-bearing, and equipping others for the harvest fields. May we endeavor to serve in faithfulness, and a purity of heart that desires “all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Tim. 2:4); but to do so, we must love those placed in our care. 

Maranatha. Shalom. 

Where Does Our Help Come From?

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

“I lift up my eyes to the mountains, where does my help come from? My help comes from the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth” (Ps. 121:1-2). 

אֶשָּׂא עֵינַי אֶל־הֶהָרִים מֵאַיִן יָבֹא עֶזְרִי

עֶזְרִי מֵעִם יְהוָה עֹשֵׂה שָׁמַיִם וָאָרֶץ

When the psalmist gazes toward the hills and mountains, it’s more than a scenic view, it’s a posture of longing, and searching. The hills and mountains symbolized strength, mystery, even danger. But the authors eyes do not linger there on the mountains. He lifts his eyes upward, beyond creation, toward the Maker of “heaven and earth.”

In moments of uncertainty that stretch into fatigue, when the work feels heavy and our vision cloudy, Psalm 121:1-2 reminds us that help is not found in fleeting sources. It does not come from status, success, or human strength. It flows from the One who spoke the heavens and the earth into being.

These verses offer a sanctuary of hope. The One who made the cosmos is also shaping your life, restoring, guiding, and strengthening as He leads you through the valleys and over the summits. 

Lift your eyes. Not just to what’s ahead, but to Who is above. That’s where your help comes from. The psalmist looks to the Lord as Helper, but Yeshua/Jesus, the Word made flesh (Jn.1:14), does not just provide help, but He is our help. 

The author lifts his eyes to the Maker of heaven and earth, yet Messiah, our very present hope, is the One through whom all things were created (Col. 1:16). Still, it is not enough to just lift our eyes, as the author of Hebrews writes, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:2). 

There is a messianic whisper in Psalm 121:1-2, as our help did come from the Maker of heaven and earth, even upon a hill, as Messiah Yeshua/Jesus was lifted up on a hill called Calvary/Golgotha, and from that hill, not only our help did indeed our rescue did come. 

Be encouraged. 

Maranatha. Shalom. 

Wilderness Journey in the Footsteps of Messiah

On By Bp. Justin ElwellIn Applied Theology, InspirationLeave a comment

“These are the journeys of the children of Israel, who went out of the land of Egypt by their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron” (Num. 33:1).

Parshat Massei (מַסְעֵי, journeys) recounts forty-two encampments, each a waypoint in Israel’s wilderness journey. At first glance, it reads like a travel log; but when viewed spiritually, it becomes a mirror: a reflection of our own sojourning through life.

In the account, there are no random stops along the way. Each start and stop was “by the word of the Lord” (Num. 33:2). Even the places of hardship: Marah’s bitter waters, the thirst at Rephidim, and the rebellion at Kadesh, were part of His plan. The journey was not merely about reaching the Land, but about a people being prepared to dwell with God.

In Messianic faith, we see Messiah Yeshua/Jesus as both the destination and the companion. He is the greater Moses, leading us not just out of Egypt, but out of bondage to sin and into restoration. His footsteps sanctify our path. His presence transforms a sojourners wandering into purposeful worship.

The forty-two camps echo the forty-two generations from Abraham to Messiah (Matt. 1). Coincidence or pattern? In each generation, God is moving history toward final redemption. In each encampment, He was shaping a people for Himself, just as He is conforming His people to the image of Yeshua today (Ro. 8:29).

And so, we walk. Not aimlessly, but faithfully. Not alone, but with the Good Shepherd of Israel. Our lives may feel like a wilderness at times: dry, uncertain, and delayed. But every step is known to the One Who has ordered it (Ps. 37:23). Every pause is purposeful. Every hardship is a holy invitation to deeper faith.

We must remember: the journey is not a detour. It is the design. And Messiah walks with us, even now as our Emmanuel. 

Where are you camped today? Is it a place of rest or wrestling? Look and see the hand of God in your journey? Remember that Yeshua walks with you to the place He has prepared for you, but along the way, there may be lengthly stops in some remote places. Yet, He is still there. And in the journey, He is leading you to Himself. 

Maranatha. Shalom.