I beg to differ Mr. O'Reilly!

Love. Faith. Rest. Hope. Power. Glory. Miracles. These are the things of the Bible. This is the unseen, intangible, ethereal, "stuff" dripping off every page of the Bible. The word of God. Alive and powerful. Sharper than a two-edged sword. Cutting away bone and joint. Piercing soul and spirit. Critiquing the thoughts and the heart. Yep. That's it. Bill O' Reilly calls the book allegorical. I beg to differ Mr. O' Reilly. And I do pray that the scales fall off of your eyes, and you will see one day, like Elisha's servant, the 'invisible army' and like the red-headed, annoying brother-in-law to Kevin Costner, in Field of Dreams, when he finally was able to see all the legendary baseball players on the playing field, and said, 'hey, when did all these guys get here?' That's my prayer for you, Bill.

 Most people agree that we're spiritual people with deep longings for life, love, joy, peace...and all the intangibles that make life, well life! But I think we struggle to tap into the source, or at least the right source, and even when we're so called, plugged into God, it seems like most of us come up short. At least I do. I am always sort of puzzled when I come to the passage that says we will do greater works than Jesus did, because of His death, resurrection and the promised Holy Spirit who now resides in each of us who are His followers. I want that! I don't believe the Bible is allegorical. I believe it is relevant, here and now. So help me, help me, help me, Lord, please to walk in the love, faith, rest, hope, power, glory, and miracles, that are YOU...and that are mine...in you.

I know, I know my verse this month is Romans 8:28, and I am getting there, I think. In Judges 7,  God is whittling down Gideon's army from thousands to 300. He then tells Gideon to walk into the enemy camp all alone in the middle of the night (where he happens to hear God declare his victory through his enemy's dream).  On the day of battle Gideon is instructed to exchange his weapons for torches and trumpets. This single story has the love, faith, rest, hope, power, glory and miracles that we find all over the Bible. Today though, we're focusing on this one.

God loved Gideon, and knew even though he was walking in anxiety and fear, he was capable of so much more. So He called him out of hiding and into a task bigger than himself. One that required faith, courage, rest. Can anyone relate? What's your hiding place, need to get called out? Oh, God loves us sooooo much, He's really not gonna let us stay there. I know. Been there. Still there. Okay, then after he's called out, what happens? He has to trust in the words (you know, that allegorical book), of God. He has to step out and believe that it's perfectly okay to go traipsing around at night in the middle of a group that would rather slice him up than look at him. How hard were those steps to take? (He prepares a table for me in the presence of my enemies, anyone feel like sitting down for a late night snack about now?) Hmm. So let's see. I'm called out of my hiding place, I'm asked to whittle down my resources to a ridiculous number that will surely get me killed, and oh, I am asked to go tripping around at night in my jammies where I could possibly get my head knocked off. Okay. Sure. Dangerous. Precarious. Unsafe. Yes, to all of the above. But if it was easy, everyone would be doing it, right? And really, if God is with me and for me, how bad can it be? That's the point. That's where we need to get. But all of the feelings that rush at us, in the flesh, seem to really get in the way and hinder, FAITH and REST and OBEDIENCE. Those were Gideon's parts. And what about the next day. Talk about looking like a fool! Uhm, here Gideon, let me have your sword and shield and just uh, take these torches and trumpets, and oh, by the way, good luck! And then the power and glory came and with it victory, triumph, but what isn't said is what happened in Gideon's spirit. How hard it must have been to step out the first time, and even the second, but maybe it got easier on the third, and then he starting really believing in these 'words' that God spoke to him, and in the God behind those words! And in the process of all the ridiculous and scary things he was required to do, Gideon stepped into his destiny. He became strong, courageous and victorious, and even more than that, He believed that God was for him, and with him, and so very, very worthy of his trust and obedience. That, my friends, is such a beautiful picture of God weaving so many circumstances together and bringing a beautiful ending, so very Romans 8:28, don't ya think?

So what ridiculous, overwhelming, scary, precarious, life-threatening situation has you tiptoeing into the enemy camp? What is God requiring of you, does it seem ridiculous or outrageous, overwhelming or scary? Hmm. Ponder it. Wait. Ask. Trust. Study. Listen. It might just be the Hand of God, getting ready to move on your behalf.

You will not have to fight this battle. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the LORD will give you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the LORD will be with you. 2 Chronicles 20:17