This morning I got up early, made the coffee and started the laundry, before sitting down for my prayer time. I just love a quiet house first thing in the morning. Today, I read about Gideon in the Old Testament. Gideon is one of my most favorite characters and I've written about him several times. In fact, as I get to that part of Judges I even begin to smile - for I remember all the precious lessons the Lord has taught me through this great man's life. Gideon was not an obvious warrior. In fact he pleaded with the Lord that he was the least in all his family! However, God knew that with His strength He could make even Gideon a strong leader!These are the things that make me smile about his life. But what I saw this morning was a fresh new lesson that I'm looking forward to putting into practice starting today!
Judges 6:34 (ESV)
But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon,
and he sounded the trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called out to follow him.
But the Spirit of the Lord clothed Gideon,
and he sounded the trumpet, and the Abiezrites were called out to follow him.
Okay, I know at first this verse doesn't seem to be that impactful. However, I couldn't get "the Lord clothed Gideon" out of my head and my heart. Let me give you a little context here. Their leader, Joshua, has recently died and they have already gotten away from serving the Lord their God. In fact, the 6th chapter of Judges starts out by saying that they were doing evil in the sight of the Lord. As a result of their sin, they were being attacked by their enemy, the Midianites. Under such distress the children call out to God for help. God chose Gideon to be the leader of His rescue mission.
Right before the time came for Gideon to bring the tribes together to fight, we read this verse above. It's almost as if God was thinking... "I know what's in store for you and I want to make sure you've got the right outfit on for this task. Therefore, I'm going to clothe you with what you need."
Growing up, my Mother used to lay out my Dad's clothes on Sunday morning. He always claimed he was colorblind and needed Mom's help. Perhaps that was true. But I think over the years it was a win-win for both my Mom & my Dad. He got his clothes laid out for him, and she made sure he wore what she wanted him to for Sunday morning. Some Sundays required a suit - for it was his Sunday to serve Communion or be a greeter - other Sundays he might just need a nice shirt and slacks. Either way - my Mom would lay out the clothes that would best fit his required service.
Today, I find myself doing the same thing for our daughter. Everyday she wears the same uniform to school. It certainly makes getting ready on a busy school-morning nice & easy. I have no doubt that Jordan could do this herself, but she has come to love that she can go upstairs after breakfast and find her clothes all laid out for her for her day at school.
I thought about what my Mom does for my Dad and what I do for Jordan, this morning, as I read about Gideon being clothed by the Lord. What an outfit that must be - to be clothed by the Lord! It made me wish that the Lord would say to me at the start of my day, "I know what's in store for you today - therefore, I've laid out your clothes for you." Then I realized - He does do that! That's what happens in my prayer time! It's there that He provides me with an outfit of strength for those difficult moments He knows I'm going to face. It's during that time, that He clothes me with His steadfast love, so that not only I feel loved & cared for- but so I can pass it on to those around me! He knows when I'm going to need an extra measure of patience for those frustrating situations that creep into my day and He covers me perfectly. That's the beauty of God's clothes - they fit perfectly!!! He knows my exact size!
Today, whether you're doing laundry, hanging up clothes, laying clothes out for your family or putting on certain clothes for specific tasks yourself - get a visual of the Lord laying out His clothes for you! Wear them proudly and serve Him ardently - for He's picked out the perfect outfit for the task that He's given you today!
I love you all dearly!
Your sis in the faith,
Penny
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1 comments:
Hey Penny! It's Melanie Barosh! I stumbled upon your blog from Kathryn's Facebook,. What a great word!
God too has actually had me reflecting on this story the past few months. I have been so encouraged by Gideon's courage, faith and strength. Just what I have been needing to be "clothed" with this season. So, I stumble upon your blog and am yet reminded of this once again....i love it when God does that!
How are you guys? I see ya'll moved to New Orleans and now you have a little boy! What a cutie! And Little Jordan is so big now! I remember when her and Isa were just born! Man, times flies by!
Tim and I are actually getting ready to move ourselves. He is the creative arts/worship pastor at a church called Lone Star Cowboy Church in Montgomery, Tx (just past Conroe). It's been a change. Very different but we absolutely love it!
We just welcomed our 4th baby in October. The Lord has blessed us with two girls and two boys. Isabella is 6, Elianna 4, Cash 2 and Elijah Ray 6mo. Life is definitely busy but I wouldn't trade it for the world!
Sounds like you guys are doing great! Drop me a line whenever you get a chance. I haven't joined the FB world yet and I haven't written on my blog (popsiclesontheporch.blogspot.com) in over a year now but reading your blog has inspired me to get back at it! Perhaps when we settled down. :-) For now you can reach me at mbarosh@gmail.com.
Tell John We said hello and kisses to the little ones!
Mel
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