The Littlest Warrior
The Spirit of the Lord took possession of Gideon. (Judges 6:34)
Imagine that it’s the last quarter of the last football game of the year. Your team is beaten and battered beyond hope, and all you can think about is sneaking away to the showers before the other guys have a chance to score another point. Suddenly, out of the locker room comes the legendary Coach “Bear” Bryant. He glances at the playbook and gathers your team into a huddle. “This ain’t over yet, men,” he says with a glint in his eye. “Trust me. We can still win this thing.” The huddle breaks. He glares across the field at the other team, then turns to survey his wide-eyed players. What’s he going to do next? you wonder. Who’s he going to send in? Then just as your hopes soar, he does something that dashes them once again. He turns to your friend Mike. Little Mikey, you call him. The smallest guy on the team. The kid who couldn’t catch a pass if his life depended on it. “It’s all up to you, kid,” the coach says as he sends him to the field.
That’s how the Israelites must have felt when God sent an angel to Gideon. At the time they were so defeated by the Midianites that they lived in mountain caves and ate what little they could find on the ground. Every time they planted a crop their enemies raided the harvest. Their herds of sheep and cattle were stolen or killed. It was a dark hour in Israel’s history, and time seemed to be running out quickly. And who does God call to save the people? Who does the Coach of coaches send in to turn the game around? Gideon. Little-bitty Gideon.
The smallest man in the weakest tribe of all of Israel. The man who jumped at his own shadow is now expected to jump at the chance to bring victory to Israel. Imagine how that news might have lit the team up with excitement. Gideon isn’t easily convinced that he’s the man for the job, but God doesn’t give up easily. In spite of his doubt, Gideon slips on his helmet and goes to work. The enemy brings their forces together and camps just across the river, and suddenly Gideon starts to shine. “Then the Spirit of the Lord took possession of Gideon. He blew a ram’s horn as a call to arms, and the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him” (Judges 6:34). To put an even finer point on his lesson, God dwindles his army down to three hundred, yet the enemy is still no match for his men. When the final play is over, Gideon’s team is triumphant.
Do you think you’re too unimportant to do mighty things for God? Do you wonder how he could ever use someone so small and insignificant? Then the story of Gideon could be yours. When God calls you to battle, just put on your helmet and go. Let him worry about the details.