You Can Win!

You can Win!

Judges 6:15 “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

Gideon was my cousin! I’m kidding! I have not traced my lineage to Gideon. But his statement in Judges 6:15, sounds like something I have said to God a time or two. But what I said was more like, “Excuse me, God, you know this is Taura and you know I can’t do what you called me to do because…” and then I list whatever excuse is most appropriate in that moment. “I don’t know the right people. People don’t know me. My hair is natural. I am overweight. My shoes are too tight. I don’t have the right clothes.” Just any ole excuse, I can come up with, I come up with it!

And the Lord replies to me just like He replied to Gideon in Judges 6:16. “I will be with you…” And then the mattered is settled. I say yes to the job, the project, the speaking engagement, or whatever the fear is that is holding me back.

If He called you to do it, He will equip you for it. So Gideon’s task was to go up against the Midianites, who had imprisoned the Israelites. The Israelites continued to do evil in the sight of the Lord time after time (sound like anyone you know?) And the Lord punished them, this particular time by making them subject to the Midianites, who were very oppressive. They cried out to the Lord for help again and in His graciousness, He answered.

An angel met Gideon, the mighty warrior and told him that the Lord was with him. Gideon was like, “NO he couldn’t be, because if He was, this wouldn’t have happened. The Lord has abandoned us and given us to the Midianites.” But God said, “I am sending you to strike down the Midianites.”

The Lord prepared Gideon for battle and told him to gather his men together. Gideon gathered the men together, but God said he had too many. Gideon told any man that was fearful and wanted to go back home to leave. 22,000 left! Can you imagine the scene? 22,000 able-bodied, fearful men walking away to go back home. Thank God there were still 10,000 men. But God told Gideon there were still too many men. So He said sent them to the water and said all those who lap water like a dog would stay with Gideon. That was only 300 men.

I am sure Gideon was thinking, Wait? What? Only 300 men are going to defeat the Midianites, who had over 120,000 in their army. Then the Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred that lapped I will deliver you, and give you the Midianites into your hands. Let the others go home.” (Judges 7:7)

There is a song that says, little becomes much when placed in the Master’s hand. As a cousin of Gideon, I would have been thinking, ummm I think I may need just a few more people to go with me. But God said, you’re good, I am with you. Don’t you love how He makes sure that they will know that HE won this battle and not Gideon. If Gideon had taken all of the men, they would have said, it was just because they had all of the strongest, mightiest men. God removed all of the men so they would know it was Him.

He does the same with us. He removes all doubt when He blesses us. He puts in you in places that your GED can’t grant you. He puts you in houses that your credit score won’t allow. He puts you in positions where your background wouldn’t dare have opened the door. He makes the impossible, possible.

You can win! He wants you to know with all your excuses, you can win. With all the resources that you don’t have, you can win. With all the people that left you, you can win. With all the baggage that you and I insist on carrying, you can win. Look at Gideon, a man who didn’t believe in himself and felt that he was from the weakest clan, He still WON. You can too! Remember to live in the RED ~ Loved and Forgiven.

#Loved

#Forgiven

#Winning