I NEED A SIGN
- DAY 45
- Fear File: Gideon
- Scripture: Judges 6:17
Then he said to Him, “If now I have found favor in Your sight, then show me a sign that it is You who talk with me. Do not depart from here, I pray, until I come to You and bring out my offering and set it before You.” And He said, “I will wait until you come back.”
JUDGES 6:17
Courage is a journey. I’m sure you’ve heard me say that at some point. And the thing with a journey is that it takes time; no matter how close the destination may be. What affects the length of time is the transportation means you choose.
In our text, we see Gideon at the beginning of his fearless journey. In this one encounter with God, he came face to face with the insecurities he had housed for decades; not to mention the scary divine assignment. And he didn’t wake up that day expecting his life to change; he only planned to thresh wheat.
You never know the day your life is going to be disrupted. You might wake up to a word from God that has the potential to change the trajectory of your life forever and going with it will be your only option. I have had these encounters with God. It seems like He just comes out of the blue to change my whole plan and I didn’t always take it so well. One time, I cried for an entire year because I wanted something different from what He planned and it hurt to leave the plans I had nursed for years, to pursue what He wanted that looked like much of nothing. I needed time and I needed signs.
Some of us don’t ask for signs because we have been made to believe that complete faith is automatic and anything short of that is unacceptable. So we feel ashamed to ask and yet we are struggling. Let me break it to you. God never turns away anyone struggling, it is humans that do. Instead, He makes His grace abound even more. So that in your weakness His strength is made perfect. Don’t let shame make you miss out on the grace you can access when you ask.
SIGN 1: Is it really you?
The first time you hear God’s voice you are probably going to think it’s your mind or the devil. Especially if the instruction is not something you want to do. I have cast a few demon-sounding instructions in my day, with a couple of stern and loud “God forbids” on the side too. All the while, God was the one speaking and that was my flesh refusing to obey.
A couple of people have asked me, “how do I know it’s God and not my head?” Here are a couple of markers I used before I could tell the difference:
- Examine the instruction. Ask yourself, does this instruction encourage my flesh, contradict His word, twist clearly stated truth of scripture, or focus solely on my personal gain? If it is yes on any one of these four pillars, it is a lie and it is not from God. A God-plan will definitely subdue your fleshy will, align with God’s word, maintain the authenticity of scripture, and serve Kingdom’s purpose.
- Ask for confirmation. Ask God for a word that confirms the said instruction. He said a word is established out of the mouth of two or three witnesses. He also made sure that every scripture appears twice in the bible for reference. If you ask Him, He will show you.
- Pray for clarity. Sometimes we can hear God clearly but misinterpret the meaning or application. If God said I will take you to a new and foreign land, ask Him if it is London or Lokoja because both could be new and foreign to you.
- Check your peace. Peace feels both like nothing and everything. It is Quietness that raises a sound in your soul. If you try to obey what you believe God is saying and all of a sudden you feel some type of way. Start this process again and add fasting to it. It has a way of keeping your mind clear.
SIGN 2: Will I really do what you said I will
So Gideon got to prove that it was God but now He needs to be sure that God actually meant him. “God, are you sure it is me you want? Are you sure I can do this? I have never done this before. I do not want to be presumptuous and then fail on this assignment.” This was important to Gideon because he was facing a formidable opponent. There was no statistical calculation where the answer will be a victory for him. Impossible. But at God’s word, it is possible. It is possible that a hider from the weakest clan can take on a stronger army and defeat them. It is possible that a market seller can own a Fortune 500 company. It is possible with God
SIGN 3: Say it again
Gideon is ghetto. He wasn’t going to just take the first response as true. He still had a lot of courage to acquire, so I imagined he thought to himself, “if I change the variables and the answer is the same, then I will know it for real, for real.” And God showed him the sign again.
Through all these tests God was not impatient or angry with Gideon because this was his first time. He hadn’t experienced anything like this before. This went against everything he knew. God knew that he will need a little more courage. So when Gideon asked He said, “I will wait for you.”
Beloved, God will wait for you to walk at your pace to arrive at His purpose. I am not talking about being childish and unreasonably hesitating when you have seen God work through you miraculously in the past. God always gives us room to grow. He is patient and He understands our frame. You cannot wear him out.
Ask God today to help you where you might be struggling to believe and He will grant it. He will also wait for you.
Shalom
Watch today’s video here
