How was church today?” A friend asked me at the beginning of the week. My response, “Good we went to hear some missionaries on furlow from Asia and that was very inspiring but also the sermon was about camels.”
It was actually about Gideon, but this time it had a fact that I hadn’t heard before and it was to do with camels. Camels can cover 40km an hour and apparently they can move quite fast. (Actually we have the largest camel farm in the Southern hemisphere just down the road from us and there are some super interesting facts about camels including that camel milk can help cure auto immune diseases and that if camels drink from the same water as cattle, their gut bacteria crosses over to the cows and enables them to much scrubbier grass than before meaning they don’t die as quickly in drought.) BUT back to the sermon.
We begin the story in Judges 6 where the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon and called him a mighty man of valour even though he was hiding and fearful and questioning – and this speaks of how God sees so much in us, of who we can be, not just where we are now and calls it forth, sometimes through prophecy, dreams and just good old Scripture.
I heard someone say, when do you call an apple tree an apple tree? The first time it bears fruit or from the moment it sprouts because you can see what the potential is?
Gideon goes through this journey of laying a test before God in the shape of different fleeces, and also tearing down the altars to false gods in their region…and then God downloads the battle plan.
First Gideon had to tell everyone who was afraid to go home and this drastically reduced the size of his army. As if this wasn’t enough, then God selected the soldiers in who did not dunk their faces in the water to drink, but remained with one hand on their swords and used the other cupped hand to drink the water.
The speaker was sharing Scriptures on how we are called in multiple places in the New Testament to be alert, but not fearful and likening it to the story in Judges.
He said that one of the Midianites weapons against Israel were their camels and that in order to keep them oppressed, all they needed to do, once a year was to release their camels from where they were camped about 2 miles away to go and destroy the Israelites crops.
He also said if the soldiers had their heads dunked in the water, by the time they saw the camels coming it would be too late to respond.
I’ve heard people say before that Gideon did not feel like a strong and mighty warrior, that he was in hiding at the time God called him.
Maybe God is calling you to something or calling out something in you that you don’t feel. We need to believe what He says about us.
Gideon questioned the angel as to whether or not God’s favour was truly with him.
Gideon replied, “If now I have found favor in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me. 18 Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you.”
Judges 6:17-18
We don’t need to question this, sure we might need to question whether a particular endeavour is from the Lord or not, but we are accepted in the beloved. (Ephesians 1:6)
This word accepted is the same word used when the angel spoke to Mary and said you are highly favoured among women. These two instances are the only time that word is used in Scripture. Wow. What a truth. Not that we are Mary, not that we have the same role as Mary, but just how much value God places on us.
We need to agree with God and as we do we begin to see these truths take root in our minds and hearts, we begin to see them transform us.
Sometimes being alert to the enemy is just recognising thoughts like, God doesn’t talk to me, I’m always going to be stuck, I’m always forgetful etc and taking them captive to the obedience of Christ…choosing to think about ourselves the way HE thinks about us. These thoughts slip in so easily causing feelings of condemnation and hopelessness or at the very least extreme weariness, they make us second or third guess ourselves.
This is where knowing the Word of God is essential. We can use our sword of the Spirit to respond with Scripture, My sheep know My voice. God has given me everything for life and godliness. (Trust me I was whining to God one day about being stuck and immediately the Scripture popped into my mind, God has given us everything we need for life and godliness.) A few years later this led me to do a word study on the Scriptures with the word ALL in them and create a FREE PRINTABLE.
Often our emotions can drag us down because we are believing wrongly about the situation. If we change our beliefs we will often see our emotions change too.
2 Corinthians 10:5 We tear down arguments and every presumption set up against the knowledge of God; and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.
Back to Gideon, even after the different signs and confirmations, he was still very nervous about this battle so God sent him down to the enemy’s camp where he overheard the soldiers talking about a dream that had made THEM nervous. (Judges 7:15)
This gave him the spur of encouragement he needed to go into battle and see the victory that God had promised.
Even this week someone came to me with a dream that had symbolic meaning for new beginnings but with a fight…and then the next day they got bad news and we were able to stand and say no, let’s go forward to this victory that God is declaring.
Possibly the most famous song at the moment with the word favour in it would be the Blessing by Kari Jobe and I’ve since discovered many other songs with the word favor in it.
May His favor be upon you
And a thousand generations
And your family
And your children
And their children
And their children
So let’s have a little dig and see what God has to say about His favor over us.
Leviticus 26:0 ‘For I will look on you favorably and make you fruitful, multiply you and confirm My covenant with you.
This Scripture has a phrase that ties together with another that I used in 10 Scriptures to Pray over Your Business:
Duet 8:18 “But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.”
Psalm 5:12
For You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; With favor You will surround him as with a shield.
Psalm 30:5 For His anger is but for a moment, His favor is for life; Weeping may endure for a night, But joy comes in the morning.
Psalm 44:3 For they did not gain possession of the land by their own sword, Nor did their own arm save them; But it was Your right hand, Your arm, and the light of Your countenance, Because You favored them.
Proverbs 3:3-4
Let not mercy and truth forsake you;
Bind them around your neck,
Write them on the tablet of your heart,
4 And so find favor and [a]high esteem
In the sight of God and man.
Wow, that coupling of mercy and truth is profound, it’s not just one or the other.
Proverbs 8:35 For whoever finds me (wisdom) finds life, And obtains favor from the Lord;
Proverbs 11:25 He who earnestly seeks good finds favor, But trouble will come to him who seeks evil.
Proverbs 22:1A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, Loving favor rather than silver and gold.
Proverbs has a LOT to say about favor, this is just a small sample of those, definitely worth looking into.
Ecc 9:11 I returned and saw under the sun that— The race is not to the swift, Nor the battle to the strong, Nor bread to the wise, Nor riches to men of understanding, Nor favor to men of skill; But time and chance happen to them all.
At first glance this Scripture would appear to be saying, whatever will be will be, BUT I heard a study where the author was digging into the word happen, and the word happen was a divine happenstance arranged by God, that cheered the heart of man and made them happy.
Luke 1:30 Then the angel said to her, “Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God.
Luke 2:52 And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
I hope this study has been a blessing to you.
Written for Five Minute Friday for the Word Prompt: Second
