Christmas is coming and gifts are piling up under the tree. My mother used to say, “Good things come in small packages.”
In Judges 6, the Lord called Gideon to lead his people out of oppression by the nation of Midian. It took Gideon a bit of time to be certain he heard the Lord correctly and to gear up his courage, but at last he had assembled an army of over 30,000 men to fight the Midianites. Gideon’s army was on the move and ready to attack when suddenly the Lord told Gideon to wait.
To wait? Why? There was a problem. Gideon had too many soldiers in his army! (Wouldn’t the Pentagon love that problem?) The Lord persuaded Gideon to let all those who were timid or afraid to return home. That night he lost 22,000 soldiers. Still, he reasoned, 10,000 men remained. Then the Lord told Gideon to wait again.
There were still too many men in the army. Once more, the Lord whittled the army down until it was a mere 300 men, armed only with ram’s horns and clay pots. But good things came in small packages. This small army unit won the battle.
What happened during this period of waiting? Gideon learned to lean on God in brand new ways. Credit for the victory that ensued clearly belonged to God.
Think about your dream. How has waiting caused you to lean on God and caused you to trust in Him?
