Gideon, The Wimp

Scripture:

Judges 6:1-16

Quick Summary:

Midian has taken the Israelites’ homes and keeps stealing all their food. Gideon is the smallest son in the smallest tribe, but God says he will help him defeat Midian. His first job is to take down the idols in town. The town people are mad, but Gideon tells them to let the gods of the idols kill him for what he has done. Because they aren’t real like God, he doesn’t get hurt at all! God has helped him through the first job God gave him!

The Point:

God can use us even when we are the smallest and even if we are scared.

Questions for Family Time:

1.     Who was the judge? What made him special?

        a. Gideon was the smallest son in the smallest tribe.

2.     What job did God give him?

        a. To slay Midian…but first to get rid of the idols the Israelites were worshiping.

3. How did he get rid of the idols?

        a.   He was scared, so he did it at night. He cut them down and used them for firewood to burn God an offering.  

3.     Weren’t the people mad?

        a.      Yes, but Gideon told them to let the idol’s gods kill him…and they didn’t because they aren’t real. 

Deeper:

            “I can’t do it. I am not enough,” is said over and over again in the Bible. God calls someone, and we respond like God doesn’t know us. We remind him of our weakness and inadequacy. We remind him of our sin. We remind him of our fear and past failures.  Like he doesn’t know all that stuff about us. Like he didn’t know Gideon was a wimp? Like he didn’t know how small his family was or where Gideon fell in the pecking order? Gideon, like so many of us after him, told God he must have the wrong person.

            “I will be with you,” is said over and over again in the Bible. It’s God’s go-to when he sees we are filled with fear. With each judge, prophet, disciple who says they can’t do it, God reminds them they don’t do it alone. God doesn’t argue with their shortcomings. He just tells them those shortcomings are irrelevant with God at their side. When God is with us, our weakness is bolstered by his strength. Our fear his bolstered by his all-knowing. Our inadequacy is bolstered by his completeness.

            There is a popular saying, “God does not give us more than we can handle.” Gideon proves that is a big fat lie. God know we are wimps. Yet he sends us to do things we cannot do. At least not on our own. God gives us more than we can handle…but never more than he can handle. When we go before God saying, “God I can’t handle this,” he whispers back, “I am with you.” We can’t handle it, but God can. He can carry that weight that would crush us.

            Being called by God to do something isn’t nearly as glamorous now is it? It means that God may have called me because I am nothing, so his power can shine brighter. My excuses don’t work anymore either. It doesn’t matter that I am a wimp, because God will make up the difference. But it sure makes things easier knowing God’s got my back. He may call me to more than I can handle, but He doesn’t call me to go anywhere that he is not beside me making up the difference.

Personal Reflection:

               What has God called you to that you couldn’t handle on your own? How did you experience God with you in that moment?