Wednesday, March 15, 2017

A Gideon Moment
 By Elin Henderson

“And the LORD said to Gideon, “The people who are with you are too many for Me to give the Midianites into your hands, lest Israel claim glory itself….”
Judges 7:2b (NKJV)

If nothing else, most people in full-time ministry are plan-o-holics! We love schedules, plans, strategies… You name it! To a degree, we have to be this way, or we probably wouldn’t get much accomplished. We look at the tasks that need to be accomplished and then consider the time, effort and energy that is needed in order to come up with a strategy and boldly move forward. Of course, with the amount of interruptions that come at us in a day that are NOT part of our schedule, it is a wonder we get anything done!   

Gideon did the same. He looked at the enemy before him, and the battle that was looming ahead of him. As a good leader, he knew their strengths and weaknesses and developed a battle plan that suited the situation. He knew the amount of soldiers it would take and how to deploy them. Then God started to do the unthinkable.

He began a slow process of whittling down Gideon’s well-laid plans and his well-developed army of 30,000… until it was a measly 300! Gideon’s job just went from difficult to basically impossible! 

How many times have we found ourselves in a Gideon Moment? We develop a very well-thought-out strategy, amass our troops, get ready to head to battle - - and then God shows up and whittles away our hoarded resources until there’s nearly nothing. We stand there in shock and dismay while God says, “Now, get at it! Go to war!”

But we do not fight alone! Even though our armies are a fraction of what they used to be, and our well-laid plans and strategies are no longer effective, God fights for us and shows Himself strong on our behalf. A Gideon Moment brings a grand opportunity for our faith in God to grow. When we cease to focus on our own resources and plans, and readjust our eyes to see only Him, we see Him  bring victory out of nothing!

GOING DEEPER:                                                       
1.      Does this mean that we shouldn’t plan or strategize in life/ministry? There is sufficient Scripture that would rebuff that, but how should we hold these well-laid plans and ministry?   
2.      Can you think of any other examples in Scripture where a Gideon Moment occurred?  (Hint: Jericho, Red Sea, David and Goliath…) How do they encourage you?

FURTHER READING:



Oakwood’s missionaries Elin Henderson (a registered nurse) and her husband Phil serve as church planters with New Tribes in Mozambique, Africa.  Elin is mother to sixteen-year-old Callie and fourteen-year-old Elias.