Yep, we have asked those and much more. It's been a time of wondering and reflecting and questioning and most of all...trusting! We are trusting in a BIG and MIGHTY God to do BIG and MIGHTY things in spite of the doom and gloom, in spite of negative circumstances, in spite of some fierce looking giants and most of all IN SPITE of our WEAKNESSES.
This past week one of the devotions I get through e-mail had this passage in it.
"When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior. ”
13 “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”
14 The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”
15 “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family. ”
16 The Lord answered, “I will be with you , and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”" Judges 6:12-16
I have heard the story of Gideon many times; however typically when we pick up the story it is with Gideon laying out the fleece and in a sense testing God. This passage actually precedes that part. You see, here Gideon is told by the angel he is a MIGHTY WARRIOR!
Wait? Did you see that? Gideon who comes from the WEAKEST tribe and is the LEAST in his family is called a MIGHTY WARRIOR by the Lord!
Of course, I can SO relate to Gideon's response! Instead of going "Alright God, let's do this thing!" Gideon questions God and reminds Him of how little he is, and all that they have already been through! YEP...that would be me.
"God, how can you POSSIBLY ask ME to do THIS? Don't you know how weak I am? Don't you see all these obstacles in the way? HELLO???"
However, despite Gideon's doubts and fears I LOVE God's response... 16 The Lord answered, “I will be with you , and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”"
God says, go ahead, I am with you and you WILL be successful!!! Not maybe, not possibly but you WILL!!!
God says, Go in the strength you have; I am sending you!
This was a timely passage for me this week. I had began to focus on all that has gone wrong, all that wasn't happening, all the many "enemies" that we faced....I had lost sight of the ONE who has sent us and called us! The strength I have...is the the strength that comes from the ONE who lives within me!
"I can do ALL things through CHRIST who gives me STRENGTH!" Philippians 4:13.
I don't want to be like Gideon in the rest of the story...testing and questioning! I want to move ahead into the battle HE has called me to!!!
As I shared this with Joel, he shared another timely story that God had shown HIM... The story of Joshua and Caleb. Remember that one? All the other scouts saw the many giants and saw no way of overtaking the land...Joshua and Caleb saw the harvest, the wonderful things that they could do once they overtook the land! What a beautiful reminder - looking at the giants through the eyes of Joshua and Caleb!
Not focusing on what IS but focusing on WHAT CAN BE!
In ministry, as in all areas of life, it is so easy to focus on all the negative. The families or members that we are losing, the financial obstacles, the giants that are hiding behind the corners, all that is not going on....Yet that is limiting Our Father!
We need to be like Gideon, Joshua and Caleb....we need to rely on the strength HE has given us, the calling HE has placed on our lives, and press forward knowing that because of Christ, each one of us are a
MIGHTY WARRIOR!
Don't let the giants and negative blur your vision...though none go with you, though you may be weak and not from a strong background - GOD IS WITH YOU AND YOU WILL WIN!!!!
1 comment:
Beautifully written and well said. Thanks for a wonderful reminder of the MIGHTY God we serve.
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