Gideon's Help

About 3000 years ago the Israelites were struggling. The Midianites had come, camped on their land, ruined their crops, and killed their livestock.

Judges 6 says one day the angel of the Lord came, sat under an oak tree where Gideon was farming, greeted him, and told him the Lord was with him.

Gideon responded by asking, if the Lord is with us why are all these bad things happening? The Lord told Gideon He had come to send him and save Israel from Midian's hands.

Gideon argued that his clan was the weakest in his community and he was the smallest in his family. The Lord promised to be with him. Gideon said please don't be angry with me but could you give me a sign that you are here for real. God did with the dry ground and wet fleece and then the wet ground and dry fleece.

Finally Gideon started his task and gathered 32000 men to go fight their enemy of 135000. God said, you have too many. Send everyone home that is scared. 22000 men went home. God said, you still have too many. Go and take your men to the water and I will sift them for you. As many of you remember from the story, Gideon ended up with just 300 guys.

Do you suppose Gideon was scared? Probably, but he was not a coward and he obeyed even though he did not have a clue about the results. 

Gideon did do his homework. He and his servant crawled down to the outpost of the Midianites during the night. He heard the guards talking about a dream they had, that they were going to be beaten. That gave Gideon the confidence to move forward.

It says when Gideon heard the dream and it's interpretation, he worshipped God. What a moment to fully know that he was right where God wanted him and was going to use him.

He went home, got his 300 guys, gave them trumpets, pots, and torches, and headed back to his mission. They surrounded the enemy, made a lot of noise, surprised and confused the enemy, and God gave them the victory.

What about you? Have you ever felt that you had a project that was bigger than you could handle? As you look over a situation you feel small and inadequate. Sometimes you even feel alone.

Remember at the end of the day God is more concerned about our availability than our inability. It's His plan, His mission, His victory.