Are you a Gideon?

No, I'm not asking if you give away free Bibles to everyone, I'm asking if you are similar to the man, Gideon, from the book of Judges.

The closer I get to beginning the work in Brownwood, the more I can identify with Gideon.

Gideon was called of God to:

• Turn the people away from idolatry (Judges 6:25)
• To free the Israelites from the Midianites (Judges 6:16)
• To face insurmountable obstacles, and succeed! (Judges 7:12)
• To rely totally on God (Judges 7:2)

You can imagine, faced with the task of taking on the powerful Midianite army, that Gideon was a little nervous about the outcome of his undertaking (and probably fearing he would need an undertaker). His fear resulted in his testing of God at the end of Judges 6. Now, we often criticize Gideon's "timidness" here, but I don't see any of us lining up to take on the Midianites.

So, Gideon has an army together, and he's gearing up for a big fight with the powerful Midianite army (which is inumerable, like a bunch of grasshoppers in a field.) At the end of Judges 6, he was unsure if engaging the Midianite army with his army was a wise thing to do. God confirmed His instructions to Gideon, but then told Gideon to do the unthinkable, send the Israelite army home.

God said in Judges 7:2:

The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.

What do we learn from this? God does not want us relying on our own resources when it comes to doing His work. If we rely on our own resources, we are often tempted to take credit for what He has done.

Let's take mission work for instance. Why aren't more churches sponsoring missionaries? Because most churches believe that they can not afford to send a missionary out onto a field. They have it in their minds that if they send a missionary out, their finances will be overwhelmed and the church will go broke.

Why aren't more missionaries answering the call to go to the mission field? Because the financial and emotional task of uprooting one's family and moving to a strange new city or country frightens most people back into their comfort zone. I've seen families begging for a missionary to come to their town and establish a work. Recently, there was one such family in Olive Branch, Miss. There are currently families in Omaha, Neb. and Corpus Christi, Tex. who are in need of a missionary to work with them in establishing a church. Hey, Omaha can't be all bad, and how cool would it be to live on a South Texas beach?

Why can't we get missionaries to answer these calls and head out to the fields? Where are the sponsoring churches? They are busy counting the costs and deciding they don't have enough. When Jesus told us to count the costs, He only meant to teach us that discipleship will cost us everything. He didn't mean to discourage us from the work He commissioned us to do.

If God provided Israel with a full army to overthrow the Midianites, Israel would have put their faith in and glorified the army for the victory. If God provides churches and missionaries with ample revenue in advance of a mission project, churches and missionaries will tend toward putting their faith in that bank balance and glorifying the supporting churches for any successful project. God wants His people to trust Him, even when it all doesn't add up. He wants us to glorify Him for accomplishing through us what we can't do ourselves.

My experience with God in the Mission: Brownwood work is that He has given me just enough to keep me encouraged, but not enough that I get comfortable. He wants me to continue to turn to Him for provisions and on-field victories. That's what He wants to do with you, too.

So, what has God called you to do that can only be accomplished by His grace and provision. Maybe He is leading you to a mission work. Maybe He has called you to revive a dying church. Perhaps He is keeping you in seminary, though the money may be running out and the tests aren't getting easier. Or maybe you've got a friend or family member that needs to be reached, but seems unreachable.

Whatever He has called you to do, He will provide for it, even if it is at the last minute. Be a Gideon, go boldly forward, knowing God has called you, and be willing to step out on faith. And, if your faith is short, it's okay to ask for more. After all, if Gideon can play games with a fleece, surely God will give you what you need for your faith to be increased.

I have lots of thoughts on Gideon. Lord willing, I'll be able to share some of them with you in the coming days.