I’m not sure how I would have reacted upon seeing an angel sitting under an oak tree watching me sweat my brains out, wheat particles and wheat dust flying everywhere. Such was the case for a young lad named Gideon.
Talk about a holy boldness with an attitude! I think it’s safe to say that Gideon was a powder keg just waiting for the opportunity to blow.
Talk about a holy boldness with an attitude! I think it’s safe to say that Gideon was a powder keg just waiting for the opportunity to blow.
I think my first thought would be, “I need some water, I think I’m starting to have hallucinations.” But Gideon, without missing a beat, began to lay into the angel and accused the Angel of abandoning the people of Israel.
To this, the angel of the Lord responded “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man,” to which Gideon replies, “If now I have found favor in Thy sight, then show me a sign that it is Thou who speaks with me.”
There are many things we can learn from our young warrior, Gideon, and his story. Gideon was not impulsive. Even in the presence of an angel from the Lord, he wanted confirmation that what he was hearing and seeing was of the Lord.
That’s not to say that Gideon was short on faith. On the contrary, Gideon was a great man of faith. Once he had assurances that the Lord was speaking to him, he was quick to follow the Lord’s instructions. When the Lord told him he had too many men to win this battle God’s way, he didn’t complain or argue. He trusted God completely.
Armed with only a trumpet and a torch hidden within a pitcher, would you have encircled an army that was said to be in the numbers of locusts? Would you have held the line and continued screaming into the night, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” Or would you have decided that this strategy was nuts?
[Like what your reading? There’s more where this came from – deeper studies of scriptural stories in my book, Legacies of Valor – Traits of Character: The Noble & The Notable. Support this blog ministry by ordering a copy of Legacies of Valor today]
Friends, it’s great to get feedback and confirmation that I’m not just writing to a black hole – so please - before you leave – take a moment to “like” and “share” these posts with your social network. Together, we can encourage many – one post at a time.
To this, the angel of the Lord responded “Surely I will be with you, and you shall defeat Midian as one man,” to which Gideon replies, “If now I have found favor in Thy sight, then show me a sign that it is Thou who speaks with me.”
There are many things we can learn from our young warrior, Gideon, and his story. Gideon was not impulsive. Even in the presence of an angel from the Lord, he wanted confirmation that what he was hearing and seeing was of the Lord.
That’s not to say that Gideon was short on faith. On the contrary, Gideon was a great man of faith. Once he had assurances that the Lord was speaking to him, he was quick to follow the Lord’s instructions. When the Lord told him he had too many men to win this battle God’s way, he didn’t complain or argue. He trusted God completely.
Armed with only a trumpet and a torch hidden within a pitcher, would you have encircled an army that was said to be in the numbers of locusts? Would you have held the line and continued screaming into the night, “A sword for the Lord and for Gideon!” Or would you have decided that this strategy was nuts?
[Like what your reading? There’s more where this came from – deeper studies of scriptural stories in my book, Legacies of Valor – Traits of Character: The Noble & The Notable. Support this blog ministry by ordering a copy of Legacies of Valor today]
Friends, it’s great to get feedback and confirmation that I’m not just writing to a black hole – so please - before you leave – take a moment to “like” and “share” these posts with your social network. Together, we can encourage many – one post at a time.
