THE TAKEAWAY:

God can break through anyone’s fearful objections and gain trust

THE MESSAGE:

Metroid is such a cornerstone game in the industry that they named a genre after it (Metroidvania). In Nintendo’s sci-fi epic action series, you control Samus, a bounty hunter femme fatale in a robotic suit. Her missions take her to strange planets filled with puzzles, layered areas, and wild firefights. It’s very common to find a section of the map where the player can’t move forward due to an obstacle. The player must return to unlock new features, abilities, and upgrades to access the unreachable area. If you aren’t convinced how awesome Samus is, just know that she is the only protagonist to use missiles to open common doors.

In Gideon’s journey, he couldn’t move forward in life while the Midianites controlled Israel. God placed the Midianites in his land to punish Israel for being so rebellious, but now God needed a volunteer to help get rid of them. Gideon was so afraid of confronting the invading army that he spent most of his days hiding. Fortunately, this did not deter God.

God addressed Gideon as a mighty warrior, commanding him to lead an army against the enemy. Gideon was so afraid that he made God show him two signs that he was really speaking to him: making a rag dry while the ground was wet, and making a rag wet while the ground was dry. God provided two miracles to prove he was in Gideon’s corner, but the fearful man needed more assurances. So God gave Gideon a small task to boost his confidence. Gideon needed to destroy the idols in his hometown against the Midianite god. Gideon snuck in through the night and destroyed the statues, and when the townspeople wanted to hang the man who did that, Gideon’s father stood up for him.

Now Gideon was able to trust God for a tougher task. He had the confidence and encouragement to send an army against the invaders. What once seemed unreachable in his life became an open door thanks to God’s baby steps. Gideon was so confident that God was going to use him for victory that he had no problem reducing the size of his army to a pathetic number before battle. With his three-hundred soldiers, Gideon’s army threw the Midianites into panic and successfully kicked them out of Israel. He didn’t need missiles to open doors, because God opened them for him.

FIGURE IT OUT:

11Then the angel of the Lord came and sat beneath the great tree at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash of the clan of Abiezer. Gideon son of Joash was threshing wheat at the bottom of a winepress to hide the grain from the Midianites. 12The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, “Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!”

13“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.”

14Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!”

15“But Lord,” Gideon replied, “how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the whole tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least in my entire family!”

16The Lord said to him, “I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites as if you were fighting against one man.”

Judges 6:11-16

  1. Circle or highlight any words or phrases that stand out to you. What makes them significant?
  2. How did God invite Gideon into the fight? How did Gideon reject God’s offer?
  3. What defense could you make that God is trustworthy and able to accomplish his goal?
  4. What proof do you need to trust God to accomplish his goal?

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