GOD’S WORD FOR AUGUST 27 ~ ~ Proverbs 3:5 ~ ~ “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding;”
From Tony Evans’s book, “The Power of the Names of God”
Friend, you may feel as if you don’t have the qualifications to do the things God as called you to do—and maybe you don’t. But remember that God can make you qualified. We’ve seen what God did with Abraham and Moses, and God did the same thing with a man named Gideon. When Gideon recognized God as ADONAI, his own story changed as well.
We catch up with Gideon at a time when his people, the Israelites, were being pounded by the Midianites. Judges 6:2 tells us that “The power of Midian prevailed against Israel.” God allowed the Midianites, a pagan people, to oppress the Israelites because the Israelites had begun tinkering with false gods and worshipping idols.
The Israelites cried out to God (JEHOVAH) for relief and deliverance (vs 6&7). they had gotten tired of being oppressed by the Midianites and began to ask God to do something about it.
Maybe everything in your life has seemed to come against you and beat you down, and yet you haven’t seen God intervene. So you call out to Him to bring hope into a hopeless situation. This is exactly what the Israelites did.
When they did, the angel of the Lord came to Gideon and said that the Lord (JEHOVAH) was with him and that Gideon was a “valiant warrior” (vs12) yet Gideon felt like anything but a valiant warrior!
And the Angel of the Lord appeared to him, and said to him, “The Lord is with you, you mighty man of valor!”
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 forsaken us and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites.”
Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go in this might of yours, and you shall save Israel from the hand of the Midianites. Have I not sent you?”
Judges 6:12-14
Having received his commission, Gideon then wonders aloud how this can be possible. After all, he doesn’t come fro a strong military family. Neither is he the oldest in his line of siblings. Still, recognizing God’s rule and authority, Gideon pours his hesitancy into the cup of surrender:
“O Lord (ADONAI) how shall I deliver Israel? Behold, my family is the least in Manasseh, and I am the youngest in my father’s house” (vs 15)
In other words, “Sir, I don’t qualify. I don’t have the right pedigree or credentials to do what You just said.”
Yet when Gideon recognized God as master and ruler, his qualifications didn’t matter. God, his owner and the one who called him, said, “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man (Vs 16)
Gideon goes on to defeat the Midianites in God’s name and with His power. I love Gideon’s story because it is such a graphic illustration of God’s ability to use any of us despite our background or which side of the tracks we come from.
When you or I surrender before our owner, the all-powerful ADONAI, and lay our insecurities, doubts, and hesitations before Him, we will be amazed time and again as God shows up in the most unlikely places and uses the most unlikely people—you and me.
When God is your ADONAI, you’ll see Him overcome the Midianites in your life. You will watch Him overrule the people who hold you down and keep you from maximizing His call on your life and your spiritual potential.
The Midianites in this story represent various strongholds that keep people oppressed, addicted, or defeated. These include chemical addictions, negative influences, poor self-esteem, and people trying to prevent you from living out your destiny. But God makes it clear that when He is your ADONAI you will see Him work things out as your JEHOVAH. He will reveal His surprising paths and plans to you—strategies you would have never thought of on your own.