JU7-4: Faith Only Grows In Situations Of Extreme Discomfort!

“Adonai said to Gid‘on, ‘There are still too many people. Have them come down to the water, and there I will screen them for you. If I say of anyone, ‘This one is for you,’ he will go with you; and if I say, ‘This one is not for you,’ he won’t go with you.'”-Judges 7:4

Let’s take a good look at the reality Gideon was facing after the Lord reduced the number of soldiers he had from 32,000 down to 300.

A mere 300 men!!!

Consider that Gideon would be facing enemy forces totaling about 135,000 men.

That’s about a ratio of 400 Midianites to every one Hebrew soldier.

Actually the total number of the enemy population probably came to about 235,000 when the women and children were added in.

Because nomadic armies from the eastern desert regions usually traveled with their families.

Regardless, either way you slice it, from Gideon’s perspective, it seemed like a suicide mission.

Why would the Lord put Gideon and his men in such a precarious position?

Well, recall what God said in verse 2:

“There are too many people with you for me to hand Midyan over to them, because I don’t want Isra’el to be able to boast against me, ‘We saved ourselves by our own strength.'”

You might be thinking…

…is God some kind of ego maniac or something?

The answer is of course not.

The opposite is true.

Even in the midst of their idolatry, the Lord wanted His people to know that He was still there.

That He still loved them and was watching over them DESPITE THEIR UNFAITHFULNESS.

He also wanted to demonstrate there is no other God like Him.

That’s why he drastically reduced the number of Gideon’s soldiers.

And as scared and nervous as Gideon must have been, the fact that he obeyed is a testament to his faith.

The lesson here is when the Lord leads us, he’s gonna lead us from a place of comfort to a place of discomfort.

Consider what He did with Abraham, the Father of our faith?

Abraham’s faith was stretched to the breaking point when the Lord asked him to sacrifice his one and only son.

So that’s the takeaway for today.

Our faith will NOT grow in comfort.

The Lord will lead us from a place of security and stability to situations that will stretch the hell out of us.

Although outwardly Gideon probably appeared confident and assured towards the men he was leading, inwardly I’m sure he struggled with all of the doubts and fears we all have.