Posts Tagged ‘Gideon’

Gracious Uncertainty

Thursday, April 28th, 2011

Gideon must have thought God had lost all grip on reality.  Imagine going to war with 300 soldiers and expecting to win. Ludicrous. But that’s exactly what God had told him to do—whittle down his army until only 300 men remained. And so he obeyed. (Judges 7)

Call it ludricous, or call it gracious uncertainty. Going to battle with so few warriors may have seemed like certain suicide to the human strategist, but not to God. His ways surpass all understanding sometimes.

“We are uncertain of the next step, but we are certain of God,” writes Oswald Chambers. “”As soon as we abandon ourselves to God and the task He has placed closest to us, He begins to fill our lives with surprises…Leave everything to Him and it will be gloriously and graciously uncertain how He will come in—but you can be certain that He will come. Remain faithful to Him.”

Gideon remained faithful to God even though he had no clue how the details would come together. How do you and I fare next to Gideon when God gives us tasks that seem impossible or senseless?

What surprises has God given you when you’ve been faithful to His call?

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When God Says Go

Wednesday, April 27th, 2011

When God gives a divine assignment, our human tendency is to say, “Who, me? I can’t do that.” Fear looms, and we offer excuses such as, “I’m not smart enough,” or “I don’t have the skills necessary.”

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Gideon’s story is a prime example. When God tells him to rescue Israel from the Midianites, he immediately focuses on his inadequacy. “But Lord, how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!” (Judges 6:15)

Sound familiar? I’m dealing with similar fears right now as I plan an event designed for business women. I’m convinced this is a God-given task and I’m moving forward, but part of me says, “Who, me? I don’t have anything to offer these corporate gals. Why would they want to come? What if no one registers? What if it’s a complete flop?”

Then I remember Gideon and God’s message to him: “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you” (v.14).

These words bring me courage. They assure me that, when God gives an assignment, He simply wants me to say yes and to move forward with whatever skills He’s given me now. “Go with the strength you have,” He says, and He looks after the details.

I also find courage in a promise God made, not once but twice. “I will be with you,” He said to Gideon (vv. 12,16). Herein lies the ultimate secret to overcoming fear. God’s presence in our lives—what more do we need? What more do I need as I move ahead with planning this event?

Can you relate to Gideon and me? If so, how does the command, “Go with the strength you have,” encourage you? How does God’s promised presence impact you?
<p><a href=”http://www.freedigitalphotos.net/images/view_photog.php?photogid=721″>Image: renjith krishnan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net</a></p

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God’s Curious Methods

Wednesday, April 28th, 2010

Sometimes God’s methods for accomplishing His purposes leave me shaking my head. Gideon’s story is a classic example (Judges 7:1-8:17)

God told Gideon to rescue the Israelites from the Midianites. You’d think God, knowing the size of the task, would supernaturally rally the troops and then equip them with the latest in body armor and high-tech weaponry. At least that’s what human logic would assume. But the Divine doesn’t often give human logic a second glance.

In this story, God looked at Gideon’s army and said, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.” And so the whittling process began. The troops initially numbered 32,000. God dropped that number to 300. Then He equipped them with rams’ horns, clay jars and blazing torches. And that’s how the victory was won.

Human logic and God’s methods often collide. Our nature feels secure when things make sense, when we can formulate plans and see how they’ll work. But God’s methods don’t fit our mould. He seems to delight in the impossible, even the ridiculous. And then He expects us to trust Him in the process! How audacious is that?

Why does God use curious methods to accomplish His purposes? Because He gets the recognition when there’s no human explanation for victory. Besides, our faith grows when we see His power at work. And unbelievers take notice. They ask questions. This paves the way for conversation about spiritual things.

Sometimes God’s methods make me squirm. But truth be told, I’d rather serve a God who embraces the impossible as opportunities to prove His power than a God limited to methods that my finite mind can understand. How about you?

Have you seen God using curious methods to accomplish His purposes in/through you?

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Do it Afraid

Monday, April 26th, 2010

Last week I wrote an article based on interview with Cindy Winters. She’s the widow of Fred Winters, a Baptist pastor who died on March 8, 2009, when a stranger entered his church, sauntered down the church aisle, and opened fire on him as he preached.

Cindy told me that she used to be a very fearful person. She said that when she identified and confessed fear as an area of bondage in her life, God began teaching her how to move beyond it through experiences that were far beyond her comfort zone, such as short-term mission trips. She admitted that she didn’t embrace these lesson-learning experiences with joy, but she chose to do them despite her fear because she knew God was asking her to obey. She used a phrase that has stuck with me like Velcro: “Do it afraid.”

Gideon did it afraid, too. He was simply going about his routine tasks when God showed up one day and gave him a special assignment: “Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” (Judges 1:1-40).

How did Gideon respond? He completely overlooked the Israelites’ need for rescue and saw only the obstacles. He argued with God: “But Lord….” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family.” The fear of inadequacy loomed large, but he had other struggles besides:  

  • The fear of the enemies that ravaged his country (v. 11).
  • The fear of encountering the angel of God face to face (v. 22, 23).
  • The fear of opposing his family and townspeople by destroying Baal’s altar and the Asherah pole (v. 27).

Yes, he was a fearful guy, but thankfully he didn’t allow his fears to stop him from obeying God’s call. As a result of “doing it afraid,” he experienced God in an intimate way. Verse 24 says it like this: “And Gideon built an altar to the LORD there and named it Yahweh-Shalom (which means ‘The LORD is peace’).” In the midst of his fears, he knew God’s peace. This discovery would never have happened if he’d said no.

What swayed Gideon to “do it afraid?” Personally, I think he believed God’s promise spoken twice within a few moments.

  • “Mighty hero, the LORD is with you” (v. 12).
  • “The LORD said to him, ‘I will be with you’” (v. 16).

To every believer, God has assigned the task of rescuing the lost from the enemy’s clutches. He tells us to go, to be actively involved in this mission, and then He gives us the same promise He gave to Gideon: “Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:19,20).

The choice is ours. Say no, or say yes. Our answer reveals what we believe to be true about God – saying no means that His presence and power are insufficient for the task. Saying yes reveals the opposite and results in knowing God’s peace.

What is God asking of you today? Please don’t let the enemy win. Please – do it afraid.

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The Trap

Saturday, May 2nd, 2009

Gideon returned from battle with a ton of gold. Well, not literally. But you get the idea, right?  What was he going to do with it? Ah-ha! Why not melt a few earrings gathered from his enemies and make them into an ephod?

Okay – I looked up the word ephod in a Bible dictionary. It’s simply a fancy term for coat. So, the gold was shaped into an outer garment that would have turned Wall Street green. Sadly, those who saw it did more than ooh and aah over it. Scripture says, “But soon all the Israelites prostituted themselves by worshiping it, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family” (Judges 8:27).

Yikes! The Israelites worshiped the silly thing, and it became a trap for Gideon and his family. How could this happen? They’d just accomplished a huge victory by defeating the Midianites in a supernatural way – obviously God was very much alive and working on their behalf. You’d think they’d be completely devoted to Him for being their defense and strength. But no…they worship an object made of gold instead.

Sometimes we scratch our heads at these OT stories and the ways in which the Israelites put their affections in the wrong place. But we do the same thing, don’t we? We spend our money on toys and clothes and creams and sparkly things rather than where it will build eternal value. We spend our time on making ourselves look good and smell pretty on the outside rather than on developing a beautiful heart. We spend our energy trying to establish an impressive resume or reputation rather establishing a relationship with God who has invested everything in us. We fall into a trap that affects not only ourselves, but our families and those within our sphere of influence.

I pray that God will guard my heart, and yours, from traps. I pray that we will live moment by moment in the awareness of what He’s done on our behalf through Jesus Christ, and that we will worship Him alone.

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God’s Strategy

Wednesday, April 29th, 2009

Who can understand God’s ways? Who can comprehend His ways of doing things, of accomplishing His purposes? Not I. Neither could Gideon, but he obeyed divine instructions anyway.

Judges 7:1-8:17 tell a most amazing story of Gideon’s victory, achieved in a way that boggles the imagination. Based on smart human strategy, he’d gathered an army of 32,000 men in preparation for attacking the Midianites. And what did God tell him to do? Whittle ‘em down!

Gideon obeyed. He told all who were frightened to go home. Only 10,000 remained. And what did God say then? “There are still too many!” If I’d been wearing Gideon’s sandals, my stomach might have turned into knots by that time. But Gideon did as God said, and his army dwindled to 300.

Man’s strategies would have said Gideon was out of his mind to think he could win the battle with so few warriors. But God had other plans. He wanted the situation to look impossible so the Israelites wouldn’t grow self-sufficient. He wanted them to know beyond any doubt that He was their strength, and they could fully rely on Him for the victory.

Over the past year, I’ve really been challenged to evaluate my way of doing things re: book marketing. Human strategy tells me that there are certain things I must do to be successful. While I agree with taking responsibility as I can, I am more and more convinced that I need to seek God’s face on every step along the way, asking Him for His direction. Are there strategies I’ve bought into simply because they make sense or because everyone else is doing them? It’s a fine line. But bottom line – I’d much rather do things as God says rather than as man dictates, even if it seems absurd.

How about you? Have you ever sensed God asking you to do something that seemed absurd compared to man’s logic?

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The Mighty Hero

Monday, April 27th, 2009

When I speak about the fear of inadequacy, I often refer to Moses as a prime Scriptural example. But move over, Moses! Make room for your friend Gideon. Judges 6 tells how Gideon was threshing grain in the winepress to avoid being caught by the marauding Midianites when the angel of the Lord appeared to him. “Mighty hero!” he said. “The Lord is with you!”

Mighty hero?

I wonder if Gideon did a double-take. In any case, the Lord then gave him a special mission: “Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

I’ll bet our mighty hero did more than a simple double-take when he heard those words. Perhaps Gideon nearly choked before stammering, “But Lord, how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

Can you see his knees quake? Can you hear his voice tremble? The fear of inadequacy had nearly consumed our friend. Who me? I can’t do what You’re asking me to. I’m the least of the weakest. Please, choose someone else.

I love God’s simple response: “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”

That’s the same promise God gave to Joshua and Moses, and more. “I will be with you. You don’t have to pretend to be someone you’re not. Just go in the strength you have and do what I’ve called you to do. I will be with you, and that’s all you need.”

Are you facing a God-given task or dream that looks utterly impossible? So impossible, in fact, that you hesitate even mentioning it to a friend lest you look like a lunatic? So impossible that you’ve brushed it off as a crazy thought, one that’s not worth pursuing lest you erase anyone’s doubts about your mental well-being or lack thereof?

If it’s God-breathed, then do it. Take the first step. Believe God for the impossible. Go ahead, be a mighty hero.

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