The Calling

The angel of the LORD appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the LORD is with you. Judges 6:12 "What God has said must become a greater reality to you than what you see in the mirror." Paul Washer Most professing believers know the story of Gideon. Even a number of unbelievers may know something of his story. He was a man who considered himself the least member of his household and his household to be among the least of the families of Israel. When an angel of the Lord appeared to him, he was hidden in a winepress threshing wheat. He was hidden because the Midianites, a people who were terrorizing Israel, were stealing their food and possessions at will. They were greatly feared by all, especially by Gideon. Yet God had called him a mighty man of valor, though nothing about his life said that was true. I heard Christine Caine say the other day that God will call you things when there is absolutely no evidence that you are any of them.. Gideon gave no evidence of being what God had just called him, yet that is exactly who he became, not only in the eyes of God, but in the eyes of his fellow Israelites. He led a band of 300 men to a rout of an army of Midianites numbering in the thousands. He became the leader of a nation. Who has God said that you are? What has He called you to? I guarantee you that whoever He says that you are or calls you to will be beyond anything you've ever expected and beyond any of your abilities to be or do. Some will laugh, others will mock if we tell them. Jesus' own family didn't believe He was the Messiah. Affirmation may be slow in coming and the enemy will throw everything he can in his seeking to keep you from realizing your calling from the Father. Your part, our part, is to dare to believe His call and stepping out into the call, even with small steps, must be our first response. If your heart tells you that it's His voice you hear and you obey, He will, with each step affirm and confirm, and with each step, our resolve to press on will grow. The mockers and doubters never really leave us. They'll continue to come in different forms and different ways. Our part is to ignore what they say and stay fixed on what He has said and is saying. In my life and calling, many have spoken against what He had spoken. Some were in my family. Some were my friends. Too many were in the church. I did what we each must do if we're to live out His call. I set my heart to obey, to follow, and to not turn to the right or the left. Not just in the initial calling, but in the unfolding call that is still taking place. At times I wavered and doubted, but His grace blew fresh upon me every time. He will do so for you as well.He has called you to what you cannot possibly be or do apart from Him. That's the beauty of the call. There is nothing within us to attain it, so we have to depend fully upon Him. It's been 46 years since I first heard His call. The calling has only grown as has His sustaining grace. He called me what I could never be and to what I could never do. He's done so with you as well. Know that. Believe that. Now, in trust and obedience, step out into the calling. You won't believe the places He'll take you. Blessings, Pastor O