Topic: Divine backup

Text:  Judges 6:1-40

Key verse: Then the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon with power. He blew a ram’s horn as a call to arms, and the men of the clan of Abiezer came to him.

Have you ever been in a situation where you felt overwhelmed? Have you even been involved in a battle and you ran out of strength, courage or even ideas on how to finish the fight and you suddenly felt the need to call for Backup? Today, we shall reflect on God’s ability and willingness to provide you support and extra assistance to fight your battles or complete projects.

Gideon and the people of Israel came to a point where they labored in vain. Their agricultural harvest was regularly plundered and wasted by their enemies, but worse still they had been stripped of all their weapons so they had no ability to fight back the adversary.

Gideon, just like others already gave up hope of salvation and resolved to hide and process whatever harvest they had left in the winepress instead of the fields. Are you in a situation now where all your efforts have not yielded any result and you are about to give up your pursuit for recovery? Have you exhausted your different battle strategies and none of the weapons seem to have any effect on the situation anymore? I have news for you. God is not finished with you yet? The battle is not over, God believes in you and the victory you will receive; all you need is to believe in yourself and call heaven for divine backup.

Gideon found it hard to believe what God said about him, because he had experienced so many losses and witnessed so many failures, that the hope of victory and freedom looked like a mirage.

“Sir,” Gideon replied, “if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? And where are all the miracles our ancestors told us about? Didn’t they say, ‘The Lord brought us up out of Egypt’? But now the Lord has abandoned us and handed us over to the Midianites.”

Don\’t stop believing, don’t cast away your confidence in the word and power of God, sometimes what we need is to partner with God and received a fresh supply of energy to continue in pursuit till we get what we have desired or prayed for.

One of the ways we receive this assistance is when the Holy Spirit comes upon you and you are clothed with power. The power is not just physical but spiritual might. You receive ability to do extraordinary things beyond your natural abilities. This outpouring also attracts other people and resources to support your mission.

God\’s willingness to support us in battle is guaranteed by his promises and his ability is supported by the testimonies we have heard of the mighty exploits he had done in times past for his people.

Don\’t give up on yourself or God, don\’t keep testing God every now and then with fickle signs, the enemy can manipulate the outcome and put you in trouble. Don\’t tempt God instead trust him.

Deal with your fears by boosting your faith as you recall the victories God has given his people documented in biblical miracles and testimonies of people in contemporary times.

The prophet Jeremiah gives us a testimony of how he sustained himself after difficult situations.  “The thought of my suffering and homelessness is bitter beyond words. I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss. Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this: The faithful love of the Lord never ends! His mercies never cease.” Lamentations 3:19-23

In the end God stepped into the battle with 300 men divided in three groups, each armed with a ram’s horn and a clay jar with a torch in it. By the sword of the Lord and of Gideon,  the armies of Midian, Amalek, and the people of the east who had settled in the valley like a swarm of locusts,  and their camels were like grains of sand on the seashore too many to count, were thoroughly defeated. Hallelujah!

Do you feel alone in this season, or are you outnumbered by the gang up? Call for divine backup up, it is the Sword of the Lord and of Gideon that won the battle. Get your sword out, the word of God is the sword of the spirit, get as many scriptures as you can find that speak about that situation and launch an attack against your enemies for the Lord is with you, and you will surely get the victory in Jesus name. Amen!

Roses&Thorns