Recently I was reading Judges and I came across a few verses that stirred my heart. God addresses Gideon, who in turn addresses God. read on:
God said, Go with the strength you have and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you
And Gideon replied, My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manassah, and I am the least in my whole family
Could God have chosen a weaker man?!!!!
I’m sure God knew what he was doing when he tells him to Go. I just love that when Gideon sees weakness, God sees strength. Often we are all too self-aware and we focus on our weaknesses. Interestingly it was Gideon’s weakness that resulted in his being called to go. God didn’t need a general, he needed a weak and empty vessel through which He could make his name known.
God told Gideon, Go with the strength you have.
It isn’t our strength (abilities, skills, intelligence, etc) that matter to God (although he uses these). It is our weakness – God uses what little we have to participate in His Mission to save the lost with his great love. Gideon’s story can teach us to accept our own weaknesses in order that we will trust in His great strength.
Gideon’s strength is found in God, and God tells him: I am sending you!
God’s mission does not succeed when we go in our own will and strength – it will be successful when God sends us in HIS strength. He is with us and he wants to use us despite our insecurities and weaknesses.
Let me share a secret with you…
…I am an introvert! I have preached and led services, and done stupid things like school assemblies, drama, sharing my faith with unbelievers. I’ve found that God strengthens in relation to the calling and ministry he entrusts us with.
Perhaps you are like Gideon saying “Why would god use me?”
God will use you because you are willing, weak and humble of heart.
God will use you because he knows the strength you have when you rely and trust in him.
God will use you because he has already chosen to send you as a partner in his mission to rescue the world from separation from God the father. So…
…Go out in the mission of God in the strength you have (inc. the power of the Holy spirit!!)
…Go because God is sending you.
…Go because you are willing to take up the call of God just as Gideon did.
…Go because you know you are longing to see God’s glory, victory and unfailing love displayed in a lost and hurting world.
Stuart Writing 