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Judges Chapter Six (ESV)

The Call of Gideon

11 Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the terebinth at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, while his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the winepress to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, “The Lord is with you, O mighty man of valor.” 13 And Gideon said to him, “Please, my lord, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our fathers recounted to us, saying, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?’ But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 14 And the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours and save Israel from the hand of Midian; do not I send you?” 15 And he said to him, “Please, Lord, how can I save Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house.”

REFLECTION

Have I gone through a long period when God seemed distant, silent, and stoic to the set of circumstances that have ground the life out of me?  When I cried out to Him, did an answer come?  If so, how did it come?  What scripture did God bring to mind that helped take the focus off of me and put it onto Him?  What promise did He give me to trust?  What command did He give me to obey?

PRAYER

Dear Lord,

How hard it is for me to see myself as a mighty warrior,

me the runt of the litter.

So often I’ve seen myself as someone merely grinding out my daily bread,

not someone going off to battle.

And yet You’ve singled me out not to farm but to fight.

Help me to go forward in the strength You’ve given me,

trusting Your promise to be with me,

obeying Your command that has sent me,

and focusing on Your adequacy rather than my inadequacy.

Please help me with the image I have of myself as so small and weak…