Hold up their arms

There's a battle in Exodus 17 that I think every pastor and ministry leader should read at least once a year.

Israel is only a short way out of Egypt when the Amalekites attack at Rephidim. Moses sends Joshua down to lead the fighting, and he climbs a hill with the rod of God in his hand. Aaron and Hur go with him.

What happens next is one of the strangest and most honest pictures of leadership in the Bible. As long as Moses holds up his hands, Israel wins. When he lets them fall, Amalek starts winning.

And Moses gets tired.

Even Moses ran out of arm strength

This is the same Moses who stood in front of Pharaoh and watched the sea open. He isn't weak, and he isn't faithless. He's human. Arms get heavy. Hands drop.

I've watched this happen to good leaders in small churches for years. The pastor who preaches, visits, fixes the copier, and plans the fall festival. The Sunday school teacher who hasn't missed a week in six years. The minister who answers every call because nobody else will. They aren't failing. They're holding their arms up over a battle that lasts all day.

What Aaron and Hur did

Aaron and Hur didn't give a speech about self-care. They didn't tell Moses to try harder. They did three simple things.

1. They noticed. Someone saw that his hands were dropping.
2. They gave him a place to sit. They rolled a stone over, and Moses sat down on it.
3. They took a side each. Aaron on one side, Hur on the other, they held his hands up.

The KJV says "his hands were steady until the going down of the sun." The Hebrew word for steady is emunah (faithfulness, firmness). It's the same family of words the Old Testament uses for faith itself. Moses' hands stayed faithful all day, but not by his own strength. They stayed steady because two friends held them there.

Notice who got the credit, too. When the battle was over, Moses built an altar and named it Jehovah-nissi (the LORD is my banner). The victory belonged to God. Aaron and Hur weren't the heroes, and neither was Moses. They were simply the people God used to keep a tired leader's hands in the air.

The Helper who comes alongside

Jesus called the Holy Spirit the Paraclete (Greek parakletos, one called alongside to help). That's what the Spirit does for us, and it's what He does through us. When the Spirit moves someone in your church to say, "Let me take that," He's rolling a stone over for you. When He nudges you to notice a tired teacher, He's asking you to be Aaron or Hur for someone else.

Paul tells us to bear one another's burdens (Galatians 6:2). That isn't a program. It's what Spirit-filled people do for each other.

Who holds up your arms?

Here are a few questions to sit with this week:

• Who are your Aaron and Hur? If you can name them, thank them this week, out loud or in writing.
• If you can't name anyone, who could it be? Ask the Holy Spirit to show you one or two people. Then ask them for one specific thing.
• Where's your stone? What would it look like to sit down for part of the battle? A Sunday when someone else teaches. A week with one fewer meeting.
• Whose arms are dropping near you? Look around your church. Someone else is tired too.

Ministry was never meant to be carried alone. God could have given Moses stronger arms. He gave him friends instead, and I think He's still doing it.