Testing the Lord

January 29, 2015

“Then Gideon said to God, “If You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken,  behold, I will put a fleece of wool on the threshing floor. If there is dew on the fleece only, and it is dry on all the ground, then I will know that You will deliver Israel through me, as You have spoken.” – Judges 6:36-37

Prove it.  So many times we ask for proof in order to accept something as factual.  We look for evidence, for something physical or tangible in order to believe.  Where is the faith in that?  It is cliché by today’s standards to make the statement; “Faith is believing without seeing” but it is so unbelievably true.  We read text books about historical figures: Christopher Columbus, Maria Antoinette, Socrates, Constantine, Napoleon, Aristotle; just to name a few.  But, who of you reading this message today have ever met any of these historical greats?  None, not one of you.  Yet, you believe without question that they did what is claimed in the text’s without reservation.  Why?  Why do some of you believe what you read about these people, yet question what you read about Jesus Christ, Paul the Apostle, King David, Moses, or any of the other Biblical heroes?

It’s so common for us to turn against a belief in God because we don’t see Him acting in our daily life.  Loved ones die, jobs are lost, disasters happen, unspeakable evil exists and it causes us to question God’s presence and sometimes it causes us to question His existence.  We can quote the scripture from Romans , “If God is for us, who can be against us” but do we truly embrace it and believe it?

Gideon had to learn this as well.  He had an unbelievable faith in God and yet still questioned God’s ability to use him to deliver Israel from the hands of the Midianites.  If you are familiar with the story – Gideon asked the Lord to make it dew only on the fleece, but not on the ground around it.  God did this for him.  Then Gideon asked Him to cause dew on the ground and not on the fleece.  Once again God expressed patience and tolerance for his request and did this for him.  Gideon walked away from that experience without reservations to do everything the Lord asked him from that point on.  Gideon brought his army of over 30,000 men to battle the Midianites.  God reduced that army down to 300 men and instructed Gideon on when and how ever raising a hand.  They blew trumpets and revealed the light of torches and God caused confusion upon the Midianites who in turn rose and turned their swords upon themselves, killing one another.  God alone used this small band of 300 men, led by Gideon, to deliver Israel from the captivity of Midian and the Amalekites.

Do you require a sign from God to believe that He is for you?  Look back over your life and identify those times when God was present in your life.  Use those times to remind you that God is with you, He is your strength, and He will always be here for you as you pursue His purpose.  If you are not pursuing His purpose and the growth of His Kingdom, then you may not see His presence as visibly as you would like.  If you are questioning His presence, you might want to look inward to see that you are pursuing His plan.

© Sondove Enterprises, 2015
For more Daily Thoughts go to: http://sondove.blogspot.com
If you would like to be added to the email distribution please click here: Daily Thoughts