Daily Devotional

If you were going to put together a winning team playing, what kinds of people would you select? Perhaps you’d look for the biggest, strongest, fastest people giving you a physical advantage. Maybe you would choose the smartest and quickest thinkers to give you a mental upper hand. The funny thing is when you look at the Bible and the kinds of people God chooses for His team, it seems an unlikely group of people. Abraham was a doubter. Jacob was a trickster. Moses was a murderer. David the adulterer. Rahab the prostitute. The list goes on and on. The people that were “heroes” seem more like people who belong on a TV soap opera or some crazy reality TV show, not people God would choose to use to deliver His people. The common theme when looking at the people God chose to use, is that they were all hopelessly flawed. Yet time and time again we see God continue to work through imperfect people. 

We read these words in Judges 6:15-16a, "But Lord," Gideon replied, "how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!" The Lord said to him, "I will be with you." A couple of verses prior to this the section begins with the Lord assuring Gideon that He was with him and ends with the same promise. But Gideon responds by reminding God (as if He doesn't know) of his current situation. "Please, my lord," Gideon said in verse 13, "if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us?" Why are we getting served fresh losses regularly? (Pastor Wil's version) I don't know about you, but like Gideon, sometimes I fail to see the things I do wrong. I only see that God’s not around when things aren’t going my way. Never mind the fact that I was not concerned about Him when I was doing my own thing. If you're like me, then sometimes just like Gideon, we look to blame God for whatever trials or suffering we’re going through. Sometimes the mess that we find ourselves in is because of our own misbehavior and disobedience, not because God isn’t good or faithful.

If we question God's faithfulness, we may also be prompted to question His plan. Gideon questions God’s call on his life. Gideon thinks he’s inadequate, again reminding God of something He certainly already knows, saying “my clan is the weakest...and I’m the youngest in my father’s house!” But God responded with five simple yet profound words, “...I will be with you...” Truth is Gideon is inadequate but God called, commissioned, and commanded. When we become children of the Most High God, we no longer need to look at all of the reasons that we aren’t good enough, aren’t strong enough, aren’t smart enough, aren’t experienced enough. We no longer need to focus on our shortcomings, failures, or deficiencies. If God has called us to Himself, then He also has called us to turn our eyes from ourselves and to Him and His perfect ability. He is a good good Father who knows us better than we know ourselves. And so we're called to trust Him and start seeing ourselves the way that He sees us. Our confidence and comfort come from His never fleeting presence.