Judges 6: What it Means to be Called

"Gideon said to Him, 'Please Sir, if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened?  And where are all His wonders that our fathers told us about? ... The Lord turned to him and said, 'Go in the strength you have and deliver Israel from the power of Midian.  Am I not sending you?'"

Judges 6:13a,14

Nearly every day, I hear people discuss problems they see, wondering why God doesn't do something to fix them.  Whether I hear this from the radio, my students, my coworkers, my family, my friends, or even from strangers, I always get the irresistible urge to smack some sense into them.

Gideon asks the Lord for a sign that it's really His Calling...  I believe that this was entirely unnecessary.  If you have such a strong conviction about something being wrong that you wonder why God isn't doing something about it, that's a pretty good sign that you are being Called to do something about it.

A perfect example in my own life is that I was forced to take physical education instead of art for my first three years of high school, until my parents intervened and insisted that my schedule was changed for my senior year.  I grew up without art classes, and that was something I really wanted someone to change.  Now, I'm teaching art at the elementary school age, doing my part to ensure that children have that opportunity.

Challenge of the Day:

Next time you find yourself asking God why He doesn't take care of a certain issue, ask yourself what you would do if you had unlimited resources and time to devote to that issue.  Then, ask yourself whether you trust the Lord to provide the necessary help (hint: reading verse 16, and the rest of the chapter, and you'll discover that His answer is "I will be with you.").

Prayer of the Day:

Lord, thank You for making Your Callings clear in my life.  Help me to keep my eyes, ears, and heart open to recognize future Callings as well.  Do not let me ignore Your Calling, and do not let me walk away from it for fear of failure.  Give me the strength each day to carry out Your plan for my life, and give me the focus to stay on Your narrow path.  Amen.