It’s week seven of the Word Wednesday Challenge! This week, we’re taking a look at Judges. Start thinking about your favorite verse from Judges. Here’s mine:
Judges 6:12 (NIV)–When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, “The LORD is with you, mighty warrior.”
I’m sensing a theme, and if you’ve read the past couple of Word Wednesday verses, you’ve noticed it too. I absolutely, positively love the fact that God is with us.
But there’s more to this one. Gideon may well be my favorite person in the Old Testament. If you’ve spent any time around this site, you know God delivered me from extreme fear. I identify with Gideon. When the angel of the Lord appeared to him, he was scared. How do we know? Because he made a ton of excuses, then he asked for proof not once, but twice. And because God had to tell him (more than once) that He would go before him. When I battled fear, I found comfort in Gideon’s story. Gideon stood up and did what God told him to do fearlessly, and God did go with him.
Want to know my favorite part? The very first time the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon in Judges 12–before the excuses, before the testing, before the reassurances–he referred to Gideon as “mighty warrior.” At that moment, Gideon was just about the farthest thing from a “mighty warrior,” but God looked at Gideon and saw who he would be, not just who he was. That, my friends, is the awesomeness of God.
Have you got a favorite verse in Judges? Tell us about it in the comments. If you are blogging along with us, blog away, link back to us, and leave a link in the comments so everyone can check you out. Then get ready! Next week we look at Ruth.
-JB
Dawn Lucowitz says
Judges 7:2
“You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her,”
This is from the same story Jodie wrote of, and truthfully, I hadn’t highlighted anything in this book, so after reading Jodie’s entry, I went back to this story. God can take anyone he wants to do anything he wants. Not only did he take Gideon, who was pretty unsure of himself all that lay ahead, but he also cut the entire Army down so that it would be very clear that God was the one at work. God was with him just as he is always with us. If we listen and do what God is instructing, it doesn’t matter how impossible something seems, because if it’s God’s will, it’s going to happen.
Jodie says
Awesome, Dawn! I wish I could always remember that God is more than enough.
Jen says
My favorite is from the same chapter, but right after yours:
Judges 6:15- “But Lord,” Gideon asked, “How can I save Isreal? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
While I love the fact that God is with us, I’m identifying more with Gideon’s excuses at the moment. I’ve been asked to do some crazy stuff, and while I know all things are possible with God’s help, questions like the one in this verse pop up quite frequently these days. Thankfully, I’ve found all the answers I need from Scripture, but they don’t stop me from thowing out excuse after excuse anyway! Will I ever learn they don’t do any good?? 🙂
Jodie says
Excuses. Sometimes I think I’m the master of the. It makes me ashamed of myself. I love that God kept after Gideon until he reached his faith potential!
Jennifer says
That’s awesome, Jodie. I love that story, too, but never noticed that small, yet important, detail before. Thanks!
Jodie says
That is my favorite part. I love knowing God sees me through “Jesus glasses,” who I will be and not who I am. That’s comfort that I can’t describe. Can’t wait to see you this weekend!
Carol J. Garvin says
I just came from visiting another friend’s blog and in response to her words I left the verse that I call the ultimate reassurance: “As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Joshua 1:5) That one’s not in Judges but the message links closely with Judges 6:12.
That being said, I like Judges 11:35, when Jephthah is brought to the point of having to honour the vow he made to God. It always gives me a reason to think about how lightly we sometimes take our commitment to Him. “If you’ll just do this or that for me, God, then I promise I’ll… be a better person, start going to bible study, spend more time in prayer… whatever.” In Jephthah’s shoes could we have kept the promise he made? Would we have made such a drastic promise in the first place? How far will we go to invoke the Lord’s help in life’s terrifying moments?
Jodie says
I struggle with Jephthah’s story. I like how you you view it in the light of how “lightly we sometimes take our commitment to Him.” That’s a whole new way to think about it and a whole new level of conviction for me! Thanks, Carol!