We sure could use a miracle today. The situation is critical; the glory days appear to be gone; defeat seems certain.
Ever felt that way? (or maybe you are feeling that way today?) Yet from the brink of despair and disaster comes unlikely deliverance.
"The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior." Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt ?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian." The LORD looked at him and said, "Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?" He said to Him, "O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel ? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's house. But the LORD said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man." (Judges 6:12-16)
Sometimes the Lord's message and messenger seem hopelessly out of touch. Where is God in the midst of the mess? If He is truly with me, why has it all gone so bad? Sure, He was there in the past and did great things, but this is the nasty now.
And then help comes in the least likely way. Isn't it just like our Father to use the least and the youngest (verse 15) to accomplish His purposes? He best demonstrates strength through human weakness and frailty.
Where are the miracles? Where is the deliverance? Who hasn't at times been like Gideon; pondering the miraculous past deeds recorded in the Bible, and wondering why God doesn't do the same today? The "Midianites" loom large: unemployment, marital and family stress and conflict, and health crises. Sure, God parted the Red Sea, and provided manna for food, and felled the walls of Jericho with marching and a trumpet blast, but what about my "Midianites" today?
Don't miss the point stressed twice here: "The LORD is with you ... Surely I will be with you". The miracle is the Lord in the midst of the mess. And He works His will and way amidst that which He is in. His way, for our greatest good; not necessarily what we want, but what we ultimately need.
Our "Midianites" indeed loom large, and it's easy to envy the miracles of the past. But the LORD is with YOU; at work using that which seems least likely, so that the glory goes to Him, and not you.
He miraculously used Gideon to accomplish great things. This same God wants to work a "Gideon story" in and through you.
Steve
Ever felt that way? (or maybe you are feeling that way today?) Yet from the brink of despair and disaster comes unlikely deliverance.
"The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said to him, "The LORD is with you, O valiant warrior." Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord, if the LORD is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all His miracles which our fathers told us about, saying, 'Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt ?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian." The LORD looked at him and said, "Go in this your strength and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian. Have I not sent you?" He said to Him, "O Lord, how shall I deliver Israel ? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father's house. But the LORD said to him, "Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man." (Judges 6:12-16)
Sometimes the Lord's message and messenger seem hopelessly out of touch. Where is God in the midst of the mess? If He is truly with me, why has it all gone so bad? Sure, He was there in the past and did great things, but this is the nasty now.
And then help comes in the least likely way. Isn't it just like our Father to use the least and the youngest (verse 15) to accomplish His purposes? He best demonstrates strength through human weakness and frailty.
Where are the miracles? Where is the deliverance? Who hasn't at times been like Gideon; pondering the miraculous past deeds recorded in the Bible, and wondering why God doesn't do the same today? The "Midianites" loom large: unemployment, marital and family stress and conflict, and health crises. Sure, God parted the Red Sea, and provided manna for food, and felled the walls of Jericho with marching and a trumpet blast, but what about my "Midianites" today?
Don't miss the point stressed twice here: "The LORD is with you ... Surely I will be with you". The miracle is the Lord in the midst of the mess. And He works His will and way amidst that which He is in. His way, for our greatest good; not necessarily what we want, but what we ultimately need.
Our "Midianites" indeed loom large, and it's easy to envy the miracles of the past. But the LORD is with YOU; at work using that which seems least likely, so that the glory goes to Him, and not you.
He miraculously used Gideon to accomplish great things. This same God wants to work a "Gideon story" in and through you.
Steve
posted by steve @ 8:59 AM
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