Day 7: 31 Days of Prayer

Day 7: 31 Days of Prayer

Verse:

Then Gideon said to God, "If You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said, then I will lay a fleece of wool on the threshing floor; if there is dew only on the fleece, while all the ground remains dry, then I will know that You will save Israel by my hand, as You have said." And that is what happened; for early the next morning he rose and squeezed the fleece, wringing dew out of it, a bowlful of water. Then Gideon said to God, "Please do not let Your anger burn against me if I speak once more, just this once; let me test with the fleece one more time: let only the fleece be dry, and let there be dew on all the ground." And God did so that night, for only the fleece was dry, and there was dew on all the ground. (Judges 6:36-40 - TB)

Reflection:

Before we get into what story here does not relate to prayer, it is important to understand what is happening in Gideon's life at this point. At the beginning of chapter 6, we find Israel in terrible trouble: the Midianites had conquered the Israelites. So they would not be captured or killed, the Israelites hid in caves in the wilderness instead of in their homes. Whenever they planted crops to provide food, the Midianites came and destroyed all their food. This made them increasingly desperate. The Lord called Gideon while he was threshing wheat (making bread) as he hid in a winepress. He was doing his best not to be seen so that he could make food. This was a time of very difficult circumstances. The Lord told Gideon, who was hiding in the winepress, that he would overthrow the Midianites. At the very least Gideon was afraid. He was not a warrior, he was not a soldier, he was not a leader. In his own view, he was not even the most important person in his family. But the Lord saw his potential. The Lord saw what he was doing and set him on the path to discovering his true purpose. The verse above takes place as Gideon is preparing to face the Midianites. He feels afraid, anxious, uncertain, and needs the Lord to give him confidence. This is why he prays. He knows what the Lord is asking him to do, he just needs support behind him. He wants to do the Lord's will, he is just afraid and needs comfort. This verse is often used to approach God as if He were a fortune teller or a diviner. "If You want me to do A, then let the Tigers win the football match. If You want me to do B, then let the Eagles win the football match. Then I will know Your will." This is poor exegesis (critical / contextual interpretation of the Bible)  and it leads us to a place where we are no longer proactively seeking to do God's will, but waiting for God to "make it clear" what we should do. If we are going to apply Gideon's prayer to our lives, then it must begin with his honesty. How much are you willing to admit when you are afraid? How much do you want to tell God that you are not sure you can do something? Admitting weakness is like firing a bullet at our ego, but that is what Gideon did. He was not worried about how it would make him look. He was honest about the condition he was in and God honored him by giving him what he needed.

Reflection:

When you pray, do not put on false confidence. Only when we lay it all out there and tell God what is going on will He speak into our hearts the way we need. Just like going to a doctor, he cannot make us better until we tell him what is really happening. Do not be afraid to admit weakness, because that is where God can be honored and glorified.

Translated from the article “31 Days of Prayer: Day 7” by Travis Albritton