The Upper Room Daily Devotional Nashville, Tennessee, United States “Pursuing in God’s Strength” for Thursday, 8 January 2015 - Scripture: Judges 6:11-12 One day the angel of God came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, whose son Gideon was threshing wheat in the winepress, out of sight of the Midianites. The angel of God appeared to him and said, “God is with you, O mighty warrior!”
13 Gideon replied, “With me, my master? If God is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all the miracle-wonders our parents and grandparents told us about, telling us, ‘Didn’t God deliver us from Egypt?’ The fact is, God has nothing to do with us—he has turned us over to Midian.”
14 But God faced him directly: “Go in this strength that is yours. Save Israel from Midian. Haven’t I just sent you?”
15 Gideon said to him, “Me, my master? How and with what could I ever save Israel? Look at me. My clan’s the weakest in Manasseh and I’m the runt of the litter.”
16 God said to him, “I’ll be with you. Believe me, you’ll defeat Midian as one man.”
17-18 Gideon said, “If you’re serious about this, do me a favor: Give me a sign to back up what you’re telling me. Don’t leave until I come back and bring you my gift.”
He said, “I’ll wait till you get back.”
19 Gideon went and prepared a young goat and a huge amount of unraised bread (he used over half a bushel of flour!). He put the meat in a basket and the broth in a pot and took them back under the shade of the oak tree for a sacred meal.
20 The angel of God said to him, “Take the meat and unraised bread, place them on that rock, and pour the broth on them.” Gideon did it.
21-22 The angel of God stretched out the tip of the stick he was holding and touched the meat and the bread. Fire broke out of the rock and burned up the meat and bread while the angel of God slipped away out of sight. And Gideon knew it was the angel of God!
Gideon said, “Oh no! Master, God! I have seen the angel of God face-to-face!”
23 But God reassured him, “Easy now. Don’t panic. You won’t die.”
24 Then Gideon built an altar there to God and named it “God’s Peace.” It’s still called that at Ophrah of Abiezer.
25-26 That night this happened. God said to him, “Take your father’s best seven-year-old bull, the prime one. Tear down your father’s Baal altar and chop down the Asherah fertility pole beside it. Then build an altar to God, your God, on the top of this hill. Take the prime bull and present it as a Whole-Burnt-Offering, using firewood from the Asherah pole that you cut down.”
27 Gideon selected ten men from his servants and did exactly what God had told him. But because of his family and the people in the neighborhood, he was afraid to do it openly, so he did it that night.
When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”[Judges 6:12 (NIV)]
Years ago, I felt God’s call to work as a children’s minister in a large church. But all I could see were my inadequacies for such a task. After resisting the call and asking God for a sign, I soon discovered that as I yielded to and depended on the Lord, I was given the ability.
In myself, I am inadequate, but I trust that God will not lead me to complete a task without also giving me the ability to accomplish it. With this in mind, I followed God’s call and served in children’s ministry for 13 years. Seeing the lives of children changed was rewarding. To this day, I periodically hear from some of them — requesting prayers or financial support as they serve as missionaries, pastors, or even children’s ministers.
I see similarities between my experience and the story of Gideon. God called Gideon a “mighty warrior” long before Gideon saw himself capable of carrying out the task God required of him. I want to be like Gideon, trusting that no task is too great because our God equips us to accomplish the tasks we are called to do.
The Author: Rebecca Seaton (Tennessee, USA)
Thought for the Day: When God calls us to a task, God equips us to accomplish it.
Prayer:Dear God, help us to follow your leading and to trust that you will give us what we need for the tasks you call us to do. Amen.
Prayer focus: Children’s ministers
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