This past week I started reading through the book of Judges with She Reads Truth. To be honest, a devotional based on a book all about Israel's continual cycle of sin, (serve foreign gods, enemy oppression, crying out to God for help, a season of rest and peace, repeat, repeat, repeat...), seemed less than appealing in a season where I could use something a bit more encouraging and edifying. But, to my surprise, before I was very many chapters in, I noticed something that did, indeed, encourage me.
In Judges, chapters 4 and 5, we read of a woman named Deborah who was a judge over Israel. (This was before Israel insisted on having a king like the other nations around them. Instead, judges ruled the land.) Israel was under Canaanite domination and God gave Deborah a battle plan on how to defeat them. Under her guidance, the enemy was annihilated, but the leader of the army, Sisera, escaped. He took refuge in the tent of a woman named Jael, who lulled him into trusting her. But, once he was asleep, she killed him by driving a tent peg through his head. Two women became the unlikely heroes of a major victory for the nation of Israel.
In Judges chapter six through eight, we read of another unlikely hero. His name was Gideon. In describing himself he said, "my clan is the poorest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house". However, God chose him to defeat the Midianites who had been oppressing Israel for seven years.
I think one of the favorite lies that the enemy likes to play on repeat in our minds is, "I can't. I can't. I can't." As in most of the enemy's lies, satan takes a grain of truth and twists it up with a whole lot of deception. In ourselves, we really are weak. But, when we take our weakness and couple it with our willingness and obedience to what God has asked of us, then God's Spirit can work through us to do the impossible. He did the impossible through Deborah and Jael. He did the impossible through Gideon. There are many other weak and ordinary people in God's word that became unlikely heroes as God did the impossible through them. We don't have to be the best and the brightest and the strongest in order for God to work in and through us. We just have to be willing and obedient and yielded to Him and His amazing purpose and plan.
still following,
Satan is surely the author of "I can't," yet I am often guilty of falling for this lie. Thank you for a thought-provoking and encouraging post today.
ReplyDeleteDear Elizabeth, I love the stories of Deborah and Jael! (I recently published posts for each of them.) What models they are of coupling weakness with willingness. Thank you for the gentle reminder that WE CAN "do all things through Christ who strengthens us".
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