Judges 6:15 - Weakness

“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” Judges 6:15

How do you see yourself? Are you a winner? Are you strong and confident? These are traits seen as important. To get to the top of your game/career, you have to have these qualities. These are what make the people who are the upper echelon of society. But are they important to God? God can use anyone. He can use the strong and he can use the weak. Sometimes he chooses to use the weak so his power can be seen all the more. Gideon is made a judge for the Israelites not because of his strength, but because of his weakness. He didn't even have great faith because he asks God for several signs to reassure him and possibly those around him that he, Gideon, was to lead this battle to defeat the Midianites.

Lord, Thank you for loving us and using us regardless of our strength or weakness. Please help us to listen for your calling and be open to doing your will. Amen.

Judges 4:8-9 - Mighty warrior women

Barak said to her, “If you go with me, I will go; but if you don’t go with me, I won’t go.”  “Certainly I will go with you,” said Deborah. “But because of the course you are taking, the honor will not be yours, for the Lord will deliver Sisera into the hands of a woman.” So Deborah went with Barak to Kedesh. Judges 4:8-9

I love the story of Deborah. Of the 12 judges God raises during this time period, only one is a woman. It is amazing to me that any women are included in this list, considering this time in history. Israel has again done evil and are in captivity. Deborah tells Barak the Lord commands him to go in to battle to rescue the Israelites. He agrees to, but only if she agrees to go. Barak must have had a great deal of confidence in Deborah and her connection to the Lord. Deborah tells him Sisera, the leader of the opposing army, will be delivered into the hands of a woman. Deborah is not talking about herself. In the heat of the battle, Sisera runs off and hides in the tent of a woman. Jael knows who he is, agrees to hide him, then when he is asleep, hammers a tent peg into his skull!

Lord, Thank you for seeing the strength and potential in each of us. Please use us in whatever way you see fit to do your will. Amen.

Judges 3:12 - Sin cycle

Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and because they did this evil the Lord gave Eglon king of Moab power over Israel. Judges 3:12

All through the book of Judges, a pattern repeats itself. Israel does evil. God allows them to be defeated or sold into slavery. They cry out to God. God sends them a savior, a judge who rescues them and brings them back to God, They follow God while that judge is alive. Then Israel returns to evil and the cycle repeats itself again. Sins have a way of coming back around. In the case of the Israelites, this usually happened over a generation or more, but this happens to individuals within their lifecycle. Sometimes this cycle, in smaller ways, happens several times a day. To stop a sin cycle, we have to realize it is happening and consciously make a decision to make it stop.

Lord, Thank you for giving your people so many chances to repent. Please help us to realize the sin cycles happening in our lives and please make them stop. Amen. 

Jeremiah 2:25 - Addicted

Do not run until your feet are bare
     and your throat is dry.
But you said,
 ‘It’s no use!
     I love foreign gods,
     and I must go after them.’
Jeremiah 2:25

This passage made me think of addiction. The Israelites were addicted to foreign gods. They would run after them, even though they really could do nothing to help them. A few lines down from this passage in 27 and 28 it says,  "yet when they are in trouble, they say, ‘Come and save us!’ Where then are the gods you made for yourselves? Let them come if they can save you when you are in trouble!" So what is the "foreign god" in your life? It might be heroin, pain killers, alcohol, food, work, success, television, our image, or our phone? Is there is anything you run after, you love, you cannot quit and that cannot save you when you are in trouble?

Lord, Thank you for always being there for us and accepting us back even when we have put other things before you. Please help us to see the things in our lives we are addicted to and help us to get rid of these addictions. Amen.

1 John 5:3-5 - Faith vs. Obedience

In fact, this is love for God: to keep his commands. And his commands are not burdensome,  for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.  Who is it that overcomes the world? Only the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
1 John 5:3-5

So which is more important: Faith that Jesus is the Son of God or obedience to God's commands? Both are equally important. I don't think either is useful without the other. If we think of obedience to God equalling love for him, then our faith leads us to us showing our love to him through obedience.  Our faith in God and his son is what helps us to keep his commands. We are given the power to overcome the world (sin).

Lord, Thank you for giving us victory in overcoming the world. Please help us to remain faithful to you and make your commands clear to us. Amen.

1 John 4:10 - This is Love

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. 1 John 4:10

1 John 4:7-21 is all about love, God's love and our love. I think the key of the concept of love is the verse above. God loved us so much he sent his son to die for our sins. Accepting this sacrifice makes us one with God and God is love, so we have become love. Every thought, everything we do is to come through this love filter. God found a way for the sinful people he created to return to him without sin. This is love. Am I loving people? Am I showing them how to become sinless and return to God?

Lord, Thank you for loving us by sending your son to die for our sins. Please help us to show love to others by leading them to you. Amen.

1 John 3:19-20 - Doubting hearts

This is how we know that we belong to the truth and how we set our hearts at rest in his presence: If our hearts condemn us, we know that God is greater than our hearts, and he knows everything. 1 John 3:19-20

This was a confusing passage for me. And when I come to a confusing passage I usually check with commentaries to find some clarity. Even one of the commentaries said, "A very difficult passage." I liked this summary best:

The force of 1 John 3:19-20 may be thus summed up: ‘By loving our brethren in deed and truth we come to know that we are God’s children and have His presence within us, and are enabled to meet the disquieting charges of conscience. For, if conscience condemns us, its verdict is neither infallible nor final. We may still appeal to the omniscient God, whose love implanted within us is a sign that we are not condemned and rejected by Him.’ (Link)

So, most of 1 John shows us what a Christian is like and not like. This passage assures us that even though sometimes our heart makes us think, "I am no good, I'm not worthy to be a part of God's family," the truth is that out hearts are not very reliable and God is more powerful than our heart. If we have given our lives to Christ and live like we belong to that truth, we are part of God's family regardless of the doubts of our heart.

Lord, Thank you for giving us clear instruction about how to live as your children. Please help us to overcome the doubts of our heart. Amen.