Gideons 4

Judges 7:4-7

One of the things that really impresses me about the Gideons is that all of your contributions go toward purchasing Bibles for distribution. The costs of travel, meetings, publicity, and even their banquets are all paid for by the members themselves. It is required of the members that they be self-sustaining, allowing donations to be much more effective.

Although Gideon sent home about two-thirds of his fighting force, God was still not satisfied with the numbers. What does God instruct? Which soldiers did God choose?

Some people have explained that God chose the soldiers who lapped with their mouths like a dog because it was a demonstration of their ability as soldiers. By lapping, these folks claim, the soldier was more able to detect if an enemy was approaching. I must confess that explanation doesn’t work for me; in fact, the opposite seems true to me.

Regardless of the reasoning behind it, God told Gideon to send home 9,700 of the remaining 10,000, leaving him with 300 men. Gideon was left with less than one percent of his original force. If Gideon is to have a victory with this force, then it must be very clear that God is responsible.

Like Gideon and like the Gideons International, being willing to do things in an unconventional way causes you to trust God. Gideon sent home most of his force. Yet, he trusted God. The Gideons must trust that they have sufficient funds to run their organization. They don’t dip into the contributions that are made.

We need to take a lesson from both of these. Rather than fret and worry that we have insufficient ability or time, rather than claim we don’t have enough money to make a difference for God, let us all begin trusting what little we have to the Lord. He will make good come from our offering, no matter how small we think it is.

DAILY CHALLENGE: Where do you need to trust God more?