I am sure that most of us prefer and love to be on the mountain top of our spiritual lives. The time when God is moving in powerful ways, and your confidence is at an all-time high. You have this positive attitude of ‘I can do it’. Your relationship with Him is passionate, which makes you bold to tell all and sundry, ‘bring it on!’
I have, however, over time, learnt that it is very hard to stay on that mountain top, because sooner or later you encounter valleys and doubts. Life has a way of bogging you down with questions, difficult issues and uncertainty. Doubt is not just a Christian’s experience, but a human one. There is nothing wrong with doubt; the problem is when one is constantly or chronically in doubt.
As a Christian, you will go through seasons that you doubt; whether God has forgiven you, will bless you, if the bible is His Word, or that He answers prayers or cares for you. The opposite of faith is not doubt; it is unbelief, refusal to believe or a deliberate decision to disobey God. Doubt is being indecisive or caught between certainty and uncertainty. One can have strong faith and still have some doubts. The problem is that doubt gains a foothold in our minds, which then leads to our emotions and will.
The book of Judges records the worst time in the history of Israel. Joshua had died, and there was no King. This was a period they went through the cycle of sin, bondage, crying out to God and then deliverance. An Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and said, “The Lord is with you, mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12).
He responded by asking if the Lord had been with them, then why had all these things happened to them? And where were all his miracles that their fathers had told them about, such as taking them out of bondage in Egypt? In addition, he claimed that God had forsaken them and delivered them into the hands of the Midianites.
The Lord turned to Gideon and told him that he had sent him with his might to go and save Israel from the hands of the Midianites. But he still insisted that he is not capable of saving Israel because he comes from the weakest clan in Manasseh, and he was the least in his father’s house. And the Lord said to him, “Surely I will be with you and you will defeat the Midianites as one man” (Judges 6:16).
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Faith lessons
We learn several lessons from this encounter. First, Gideon was an ordinary man, a farmer with no political ambitions. It is amazing how God uses ordinary people to do extraordinary things, the foolish things of this world to confound the wise. Second, the Israelites were under the oppression of the Midianites and Amalikites. They were pressed hard from all sides and angles for a long time, and people were at their lowest point. This was a pestering and persistent problem.
Third, all the crops they were about to harvest were destroyed by these enemies. Many of us have faced such situations—just as you are about to get a breakthrough, something goes wrong. Whether it’s a job, tender, life partner, child, or graduation, something suddenly blocks it.
Fourth, Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to hide from the Midianites. He was doing the right thing in the wrong place. A winepress is small and not ideal for threshing wheat, which should be done in the open to allow the wind to separate the chaff. Fear, bitterness, and disappointment can lead you to operate outside your ideal environment. But before God uses you, He may bring you to your personal threshing floor.
Fifth, God told Gideon, “The Lord is with you, mighty man of valour” (Judges 6:12). Often, God says things about you that seem impossible when compared to your current state. He doesn’t see you as you are, but as who you will become. He called Abraham and Sarah the father and mother of many nations when they were old and childless!
Sixth, God called Gideon to act on the word He had given. Gideon had to overcome his fear, family background, and sense of inadequacy. He had to cling to God’s promise to fulfil the mission.
Seventh, God gave him many signs to prove He was indeed with him.
Eighth, God used basic and almost foolish tools to grant him victory—trumpets, pitchers, torches, swords, and a shout: “The sword of the Lord and Gideon!” His army had to be reduced to 300 men so that Israel would know it was God who delivered them. Sometimes, people must leave your life so you can see clearly: it wasn’t them, but God who brought you through.
Bishop Muriithi is the Founder & Overseer of House of Grace International Ministries