The night was dark, the air still. Why is it so quiet? Thunder…God, some thunder would be nice right about now. The sky was silent.
The man was sure the men of the town would hear. How could they not? Rocks were tumbling, wood splitting, bulls bellowing, the noise was deafening.
They would kill him when they got to him. He’d had dreams of leading God’s people against the Midianites. Those dreams would soak into the dusty soil along with his blood. AND, it was going to be God’s people that drained him of both.
The men with him were good men, but they would run. He would be alone to face the men of his town, his friends…his family. Why had God asked him to do this? Why would God put him in this place?
Have you ever been in a situation destined for failure? Ever felt like God had something special he wanted from you, but your current crisis seemed to doom God’s design? That’s exactly where Gideon found himself.
God had called him to a meaningful task. But I will be with you, and you shall strike the Midianites as one man. First, however, God had one other small assignment.
…pull down the altar of Baal that your father has, and cut down the Asherah that is beside it and build an altar to the Lord your God on top of the stronghold here… (Judges 6:26)
If God wanted to use Gideon to free his people from the bondage of Midian, why would he threaten that plan? Of course, God didn’t. The only real threat to Gideon was between his ears.
That’s not to say he was in no danger. Gideon was afraid of the men of the town, and sure enough the next morning they came to kill him. The threats came to nothing, but Gideon’s actions were important for several reasons.
1. It showed that Gideon would obey God. He may have been terrified. He may have done it in secrecy, in the middle of the night, but he did it.
2. It pointed out the sin of God’s people, sins that needed to be addressed. They wanted God to save them, but they were still worshipping other gods as well.
3. It showed God’s people that Gideon was not afraid of the gods of the Midianites. In fact, they gave him a new name, Jerubbaal, which meant Let Baal contend against him. Baal didn’t.
After this experience Gideon called for warriors, and 32,000 men were willing to follow him. Would those warriors have followed Gideon if he hadn’t passed through this time of testing? When God places you in a path that seems to hold no hope of success, don’t be too quick to pray for deliverance.
Obey. In the dark of night, do what’s right. Face your fear and remain faithful. God may be preparing you for something much greater. To the one who is faithful in the little things, much will be given.
Thursday, March 17, 2011
O Mighty Man of Valor
The hole was shallow, carved from solid rock. The low bowl normally held the juice of the grapes as they were stomped. It was NOT designed for threshing wheat.
Wide eyes peeked over the lip of the winepress, scanning the horizon for dust plumes or any other evidence that the enemy was near. Seeing nothing, the man ducked back into the hole. He was miserable, but hunger could make you do things you normally wouldn’t.
The work was stifling. Sweat dripped from his nose and stung his eyes. The chaff from the wheat stuck to his skin.
He lifted a bowl of the un-sifted wheat as high as he dared and slowly dumped it out, shaking it slightly over the empty bowl below. While it fell he blew against the grain hoping to blow the lighter hulls away from the heavier grains. The solid wheat kernels peppered the inside of the lower bowl. Unfortunately, most of the empty husks landed in the bowl as well.
The wind was blowing up outside of the hole, and if he took the grain to the surface the breeze would quickly disperse the chaff like a dust storm. The Midianite hordes would take the wheat just as quickly. They’d been doing it for seven years, so food was scarce, and he couldn’t afford to lose this meager amount of wheat his family had been able to hide from them.
God had forsaken his people. He wouldn’t be hiding in a hole if it weren’t true. He could be brave, stand tall, even destroy the Midianites.
Dusty fingers tried picking out dried husks and grass from the good grains. He envisioned himself in armor, leading an army of mighty warriors against those marauding Midian locusts. “Yeah, right. Stay in your hole and hide,” he mumbled aloud.
Quickly he slapped a dirty hand over his mouth. He peeked over the rim of the hole again, scanning all around. Nothing.
Whew!
The man plopped back down and chaff puffed up around him. God, why have you forsake us? A prophet said it was because the people had not obeyed God.
At a tiny noise the man’s head rose and there was another man towering over him at the edge of the winepress. I’m dead! The wheat will be stolen, and my family will do without…again. “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor,” the man’s voice boomed.
What? The Lord is with me? Where? Here in this hole?
The man in the hole was Gideon, and the man who appeared was an angel of the Lord. If this angel materialized in front of you, what might he call you: o patient one, o dependable servant, o compassionate child? Don’t look to your strengths. You won’t find your name there. Think about your potential problems, your most constant insecurity, your greatest weakness.
The name God calls you may well be found there. Where you see problems, God envisions potential. Where Gideon felt weak, unable to defend his food from his foes, humbly hiding from them in a hole, God saw a mighty man of valor.
Does this mean you’re mistaken about your own weakness? Was Gideon? Was the man threshing wheat in a winepress really mighty?
No. He was weak and scared – a chicken, but he became a mighty warrior. How?
The secret of Gideon’s metamorphosis from weakness to warrior, mouse to man, was in the angel’s first statement. “The Lord is with you.” Later the Bible tells us the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon. God’s Spirit covered him. Talk about some powerful armor.
We have an added bonus in that God’s Spirit lives in us if we are children of God. That doesn’t guarantee a change from weakness to strength, because we must be with God. We have to crucify ourselves and let God live through us.
When we do, our weakness can become His strength. Our disorganization develops into His order. Our frustration becomes His peace.
Wide eyes peeked over the lip of the winepress, scanning the horizon for dust plumes or any other evidence that the enemy was near. Seeing nothing, the man ducked back into the hole. He was miserable, but hunger could make you do things you normally wouldn’t.
The work was stifling. Sweat dripped from his nose and stung his eyes. The chaff from the wheat stuck to his skin.
He lifted a bowl of the un-sifted wheat as high as he dared and slowly dumped it out, shaking it slightly over the empty bowl below. While it fell he blew against the grain hoping to blow the lighter hulls away from the heavier grains. The solid wheat kernels peppered the inside of the lower bowl. Unfortunately, most of the empty husks landed in the bowl as well.
The wind was blowing up outside of the hole, and if he took the grain to the surface the breeze would quickly disperse the chaff like a dust storm. The Midianite hordes would take the wheat just as quickly. They’d been doing it for seven years, so food was scarce, and he couldn’t afford to lose this meager amount of wheat his family had been able to hide from them.
God had forsaken his people. He wouldn’t be hiding in a hole if it weren’t true. He could be brave, stand tall, even destroy the Midianites.
Dusty fingers tried picking out dried husks and grass from the good grains. He envisioned himself in armor, leading an army of mighty warriors against those marauding Midian locusts. “Yeah, right. Stay in your hole and hide,” he mumbled aloud.
Quickly he slapped a dirty hand over his mouth. He peeked over the rim of the hole again, scanning all around. Nothing.
Whew!
The man plopped back down and chaff puffed up around him. God, why have you forsake us? A prophet said it was because the people had not obeyed God.
At a tiny noise the man’s head rose and there was another man towering over him at the edge of the winepress. I’m dead! The wheat will be stolen, and my family will do without…again. “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor,” the man’s voice boomed.
What? The Lord is with me? Where? Here in this hole?
The man in the hole was Gideon, and the man who appeared was an angel of the Lord. If this angel materialized in front of you, what might he call you: o patient one, o dependable servant, o compassionate child? Don’t look to your strengths. You won’t find your name there. Think about your potential problems, your most constant insecurity, your greatest weakness.
The name God calls you may well be found there. Where you see problems, God envisions potential. Where Gideon felt weak, unable to defend his food from his foes, humbly hiding from them in a hole, God saw a mighty man of valor.
Does this mean you’re mistaken about your own weakness? Was Gideon? Was the man threshing wheat in a winepress really mighty?
No. He was weak and scared – a chicken, but he became a mighty warrior. How?
The secret of Gideon’s metamorphosis from weakness to warrior, mouse to man, was in the angel’s first statement. “The Lord is with you.” Later the Bible tells us the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon. God’s Spirit covered him. Talk about some powerful armor.
We have an added bonus in that God’s Spirit lives in us if we are children of God. That doesn’t guarantee a change from weakness to strength, because we must be with God. We have to crucify ourselves and let God live through us.
When we do, our weakness can become His strength. Our disorganization develops into His order. Our frustration becomes His peace.
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