The following paragraph is from my friend. He sent me a text this morning. Other than my daughter’s name, which is not Jane, I have not changed anything else. Didn’t need to. Thanks for reading!
I saw the picture of *Jane* getting her new hair style. As I looked the Lord brought this to mind. No longer will she be known as, “you know, the girl with the long braid.” She has changed her identity. People will see a new *Jane*. She is no longer defined by her hair. I think, as Christians, sometimes we need to change how others see us. Do we like how those we may be trying to influence /witness to define us? Do they see someone with validity or not? Can they see past “the long braid” and see God?
This post is a continuation of some Old Testament people. Click on Abraham or Joseph to read the other two Old Testament posts.
Gideon. As with most of these people, their stories are filled with crazy, supernatural stuff. Angels visiting, people testing God, battles begin fought. It all seems unreal to me. But yet it is real. And that is what strikes me. These people, especially Gideon, are normal people. And by normal, I mean normal-every-day-average-unremarkable people.
Just like me.
But before we get to the angel visit, the testing, or the fighting, we find Gideon hiding.
He was hiding from the enemy. Why? So they would not take his wheat. The enemy of Israel was oppressing Gideon and all of Israel. For seven years this was happening. The first 11 verses of Judges 6 give us the account. It was all the Israelites could do to stay alive. They hid in caves. Their crops and livestock were under constant attack. It was bad.
But that is what happens when, “Again, the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord,”. God let the enemy invade and oppress.
Is the enemy of your soul invading and oppressing you? Are you doing evil in the eyes of the Lord? Just a thought.
Back to Gideon. He was in a winepress threshing some wheat. This picture shows an ancient winepress. The next one shows a threshing floor.
Note the difference. The threshing floor is an open area where the wind can blow easier (perhaps like the Holy Spirit?) . Gideon was in a winepress. He was trying to thresh the wheat in a secret place. Only fearful people do such things. Wheat was meant to be tossed into the air out in the open. This way, the wind could separate the wheat from the chaff. It is much more difficult if you are hiding in an enclosed space.
But that is what happens when doing evil in the eyes of the Lord. We are meant for one thing but we are doing another. Our actions are secret or hidden instead of being lived out. But if you are discouraged about that, the story is not over.
Verse 12 shows how God feels about Gideon. Here is the verse, “When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”
Boom! Gideon was not a warrior, he was in a winepress! However, God feels differently.
Your surroundings should not dictate your status. Your circumstances do not negate your christianity. Your foes can’t take away your faith.
Gideon needed a supernatural reminder of his position. I think that you and I could use reminders now and again, don’t you?
Well consider this your reminder. God created you. You are a mighty warrior! Get out of your winepress and get to the business of God.
Two Minutes With Tim 