“But
God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak
things of the world to shame the strong.” – 1 Corinthians 1:27
I was reading about Gideon
again today. He came from the least family in the weakest tribe of Israel; yet,
God chose him to deliver Israel from the seven-year oppression of Midian. The
poor man was frightened, and feeling inadequate to meet up to the requirements
of the job. He compared his life at that moment and in the past to the
qualifications of leadership and felt deficient, less than able to accomplish
the task God called Him to do. Gideon doubted that he even heard the Lord
correctly, so he did a few tests with an animal’s fleece. God miraculously and
patiently humored Gideon and built up his faith by confirming His calling on
Gideon’s life.
What
humanity highly values is detestable in God's sight (Luke
16:15; John 8:15). God always uses the
foolish things in the world to amaze the clever (1 Corinthians 1:27; Jeremiah
8:9). God looks at our heart, not on our
outward appearance (1 Samuel 16:7).
He already knows our shortcomings and He witnessed all of our failings so far
in life. We can justify
our self in the eyes of men, but God knows our motives and our thoughts. After Gideon complained about his incompetence, God
reminded Gideon that since God was calling him, He should realize that God
thought he could do the job (Judges 6:14-15). Gideon’s relationship with God was all he really needed to be qualified
to do God’s will in this mighty event.
The
Lord searches every heart and understands every motive behind all of our
thoughts. He looks for those who acknowledge Him and serve Him willingly, with
unreserved devotion. If we seek Him, we will find Him; but if we forsake Him,
He will reject us for eternity (1
Chronicles 28:9; Proverbs 16:2). The Lord Almighty judges
righteously and tests the heart and mind of those who claim to love Him. If we
commit our cause to Him, He will mete out vengeance upon those who harm us (Jeremiah
11:20). God’s
gift of Salvation is free to anyone who will call upon His name and surrender
their life to His will (John 3:16-18). He continually searches our heart and examines our
mind in order to reward us according to our conduct, according to what our
deeds deserve (Jeremiah 17:10).
God
not only sees our motives and the true intention of our heart, but He also
knows who we will be once we submit to His Spirit. He gives us every
opportunity to glorify His name with our life. He forgives us each time we fail
and disobey (1 John 1:9). We can put away our fears and insecurities and rely on His
Spirit within us as we seek to do His will with our life (2
Corinthians 4:18). God sees our full potential, even when we doubt our self, and He gives
us the desire and the power to walk in obedience to His calling on us
throughout our life (Philippians 2:12-13).
Prayer:
Lord
Jesus, I feel like such a success in life because You live in me and work
through me every day. You put me in the right place at the right time to do all
that You call me to do. By Your grace I am what I am. Your grace works wonders
in my life, and everything I have is by Your grace that is with me always (1
Corinthians 15:10). Thank you for freedom to live my life according to Your precepts and
the means with which to enjoy what You give me every single day. Thought for the Day:
Walk forward with confidence, as you trust in God’s wisdom.
