Timidity Transformed

                           "What could we accomplish if we knew we could not fail?"
                                                      Eleanor Roosevelt




For seven long years Israel was oppressed under the tyrannical reign of the Midianites. Their homes were plundered and their harvest was consumed. Fear was palpable amongst the Israelites because of the cruelty and savagery of their enemies. In fact, many of them hid in caves just so they could remain sheltered from the large company  of those who wanted no less than their destruction.

And, in a cave is where we first meet Gideon. He was threshing wheat in a winepress so that he would not be discovered when the Angel of the Lord appeared to him. What the angel spoke to him certainly seemed laughable given his circumstances. But, God saw something in Gideon that Gideon could not see in himself. The angel said, "The Lord is with you, you mighty man of [fearless] courage" (Judges 6:12).

Immediately, Gideon began to question the character and faithfulness of God. He said to the angel,
"O sir, if the Lord is with us, why is all this befallen us? And where are all His wondrous works of which our fathers told us, saying, 'Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has forsaken us and given us into the hand of the Midian" (Judges 6:13).

This was not Gideon's finest moment. However, it was the moment when the reality of Gideon's present and past truths collided with God's future plans. Truly, it was a sobering moment of human frailty being challenged by an Almighty God. And the truth was, that even a visible manifestation of God was not enough to quell Gideon's doubts and insecurities at that time.

Thankfully, God understands our weaknesses and patiently gave Gideon the repeated reassurances he sought. His timidity was transformed by the presence, empowerment, and assurances that his loving Heavenly Father gave to him.

It was during this encounter with God that something inside of Gideon was stirred. While God was stirring his soul, faith began to rise up against his fear. Unfortunately, faith was not the only thing that bubbled up. So did Gideon's insecurities.

There were two main insecurities in which Gideon grappled. The first was the fear that God wouldn't be faithful. After all, he could not reconcile the fact that God was supposed to be with them and yet so many hardships and sufferings had occurred. His logic screamed that there was no way God's plan could ever work, as well as those nagging thoughts that God might not really do what He said He would do.

The second insecurity was the fear that he was just not good enough. Gideon said, "Oh Lord, how can I deliver Israel? Behold, my clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house" (Judges 6:15). His descriptive words of himself were the "weakest" and the "least". His truths clashed with the truth that God was still determined to use this unsure, insecure, and fearful man to accomplish the impossible.

All Gideon could see, however, was his own ineptitude. S.J. Robinson said, "There was nothing particularly special about Gideon; he was an ordinary young man, from an inconsequential family. And, he was living through a traumatic period in Israel's history, doing what he could to survive."

God answers all of Gideon's insecurities with a one liner. He said, "Surely I will be with you" (Judges 6:16). This was the only thing Gideon really needed to understand. This is because God does not call the brave; He makes brave the called. Whenever God speaks, it is through the resurrection power of Christ.

Apparently, there was still some trepidation inside of Gideon's heart. This is when he asked God to grant him an impossible sign. When God complied, he asked for another one. And then, oh yeah, another one. God graciously responded to Gideon's reluctance.

There was a transition in thinking and a growth in faith that finally allowed Gideon to begin to focus more on God's ability than on his own inability. He had to realize that it is our very weaknesses that become the best conduit for God's strength. His weakness plus God's strength would be exactly enough to obtain victory.

When we really trust that God is with us, all doubts and fears are stayed. We recognize that He is our: Deliverer, Redeemer, Source, Strength, Security, Provider, Defender, and Righteousness. When He calls us He will equip us for the task.

The caveat is that sometimes the way forward with God actually takes us backward. Imagine the slingshot. This is the path (and the test) in which God took Gideon.

God told Gideon to go conquer his enemies. The problem was that there were approximately 200,000 Midianites and Amalekites, but Gideon only had an army of 32,000. To add insult to injury, God did the unthinkable. He told Gideon that his army was too big.

First, God chose to reduce Gideon's number by eliminating the soldiers who were trembling. That knocked out 22,000 men. Then, God told the remaining 10,000 men to drink from the pond. Gideon was allowed to keep the men who cupped their hands and drank water out of them. That only left Gideon with an army of 300 men!

Fear and idolatry were the disqualifying factors. The men who knelt down at the water would have been men who were accustomed to bowing down to worship Baal. What they practiced in private would ultimately be made public by the hand of God.

The weapons God had Gideon's army use were quite unconventional. They were to bring trumpets, pitchers, and torches. They blew the trumpets loudly, smashed the pitchers (to make a loud noise), and held high their torches. This so confused their enemies that they turned on one another and destroyed themselves!

God gave Gideon the victory as he allowed God to transform him and draw him closer to Himself. Gideon began to understand that courage is not the absence of fear; it is doing God's will in spite of it. When he began to see God's presence as bigger than his circumstances, he grew in confidence  that God would never leave him or forsake him.

When he trusted that God's love is perfect in intensity, constancy, sufficiency, and sovereignty, fear began to melt away (1 John 4:18). God is on our side and He is in control, even when it looks like evil is winning. With God's perfect love within us, we never have to fear. This is how our timidity is transformed and God can use our lives in extraordinary ways!


"God is preparing His heroes. And when the opportunity comes, He can fit them into their places in a moment. And the world will wonder where they came from."
                                                                                                                                    A.B. Simpson