1 00:00:02,690 --> 00:00:13,299 Speaker 1: Life Audio Hello. Thank you for listening to your daily 2 00:00:13,340 --> 00:00:16,779 Speaker 1: Bible verse, the podcast that examines one verse each day 3 00:00:17,280 --> 00:00:19,800 Speaker 1: to learn more about God and His will for us. 4 00:00:20,500 --> 00:00:23,060 Speaker 1: I'm your host, Jennifer Slattery, and after this short word 5 00:00:23,100 --> 00:00:28,660 Speaker 1: from our sponsors, we'll dive into today's Bible verse, Judges 6.14. 6 00:00:39,830 --> 00:00:43,370 Speaker 1: Today's Bible verse is Judges 6.14. The Lord turned to 7 00:00:43,430 --> 00:00:46,030 Speaker 1: him and said, Go in the strength you have and 8 00:00:46,170 --> 00:00:49,610 Speaker 1: save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you? 9 00:00:51,090 --> 00:00:54,810 Speaker 1: This is for those who feel weary, overwhelmed, and overburdened, 10 00:00:55,050 --> 00:00:56,810 Speaker 1: and who need to know deep in your bones that 11 00:00:56,850 --> 00:01:00,090 Speaker 1: you are not alone. that today's challenge won't take you out. 12 00:01:00,870 --> 00:01:04,290 Speaker 1: I know what that feels like. I've had numerous instances 13 00:01:04,350 --> 00:01:08,610 Speaker 1: where the weight I was carrying felt insurmountable, my emotional 14 00:01:08,670 --> 00:01:13,970 Speaker 1: and mental capacity depleted, and I desperately sought God's help. 15 00:01:14,590 --> 00:01:19,250 Speaker 1: Not to persevere, but to rescue me immediately from the situation. 16 00:01:20,110 --> 00:01:23,740 Speaker 1: And sadly, or perhaps thankfully, depending on where I sit 17 00:01:23,840 --> 00:01:27,490 Speaker 1: in that journey, he rarely does that. Instead, he invites 18 00:01:27,550 --> 00:01:30,910 Speaker 1: me to lean on him and to experience, in my weakness, 19 00:01:31,510 --> 00:01:34,660 Speaker 1: his perfect strength. When speaking on this subject, I like 20 00:01:34,730 --> 00:01:37,840 Speaker 1: to discuss what marathon runners refer to as the wall. 21 00:01:38,140 --> 00:01:41,640 Speaker 1: This is the place, often somewhere around mile 19, where 22 00:01:41,740 --> 00:01:45,770 Speaker 1: the athlete hits extreme fatigue, their legs feel impossibly heavy, 23 00:01:46,080 --> 00:01:50,770 Speaker 1: and everything within them is screaming to quit. Here's why. 24 00:01:51,440 --> 00:01:54,040 Speaker 1: At this point in the race, their body runs out 25 00:01:54,060 --> 00:01:58,160 Speaker 1: of usable glucose, its preferred fuel, and must shift to 26 00:01:58,200 --> 00:02:01,060 Speaker 1: relying on fat. This is similar to what we experience 27 00:02:01,100 --> 00:02:05,080 Speaker 1: emotionally and spiritually when we've quote-unquote reached the end of ourselves, 28 00:02:05,120 --> 00:02:08,989 Speaker 1: when we've depleted our normal reserves and coping strategies and 29 00:02:09,190 --> 00:02:12,570 Speaker 1: must depend on God's strength as we increasingly yield to 30 00:02:12,630 --> 00:02:16,389 Speaker 1: his spirit at work within us. It's then when we're 31 00:02:16,450 --> 00:02:19,850 Speaker 1: most tempted to quit that the Lord says to us, 32 00:02:20,010 --> 00:02:22,770 Speaker 1: go in the strength you have, as he did to 33 00:02:22,790 --> 00:02:26,110 Speaker 1: Gideon the day he found him hiding in fear in 34 00:02:26,130 --> 00:02:30,040 Speaker 1: a winepress. If you've caught my previous episodes, which drop 35 00:02:30,100 --> 00:02:34,040 Speaker 1: each Friday, you remember how painful and chaotic this period 36 00:02:34,100 --> 00:02:37,600 Speaker 1: was for God's people. Their constant rebellion landed them in 37 00:02:37,980 --> 00:02:41,890 Speaker 1: one crisis after another, all caused by oppression at the 38 00:02:43,460 --> 00:02:46,520 Speaker 1: In Judges 6, the Midianites rise to the forefront of 39 00:02:46,560 --> 00:02:49,230 Speaker 1: their story when they invaded the land, destroyed their crops, 40 00:02:49,570 --> 00:02:53,669 Speaker 1: and left them without resources. Listen to how verse 5 41 00:02:53,669 --> 00:02:56,780 Speaker 1: describes them. They came up with their livestock in their 42 00:02:56,840 --> 00:03:00,519 Speaker 1: tents like swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count 43 00:03:00,580 --> 00:03:04,600 Speaker 1: them or their camels. They invaded the land to ravage it. 44 00:03:05,160 --> 00:03:09,670 Speaker 1: leaving ancient Israel without any visual signs of strength. And Gideon, 45 00:03:09,710 --> 00:03:12,109 Speaker 1: the man the Lord chose to liberate his people from 46 00:03:12,150 --> 00:03:17,230 Speaker 1: this tyrannical oppression, was hiding in a winepress. That's not 47 00:03:17,270 --> 00:03:20,780 Speaker 1: the behavior one would expect from a quote-unquote mighty warrior 48 00:03:20,940 --> 00:03:24,140 Speaker 1: as the angel of the Lord, likely pre-incarnate Christ, referred 49 00:03:24,180 --> 00:03:28,740 Speaker 1: to him. But here's why this is so powerful. Gideon 50 00:03:28,780 --> 00:03:32,019 Speaker 1: might not have appeared like a warrior, He might not 51 00:03:32,040 --> 00:03:35,660 Speaker 1: have felt strong or courageous, and frankly, in that moment, 52 00:03:35,740 --> 00:03:39,520 Speaker 1: when he first encountered Jesus, he wasn't any of those things. 53 00:03:40,740 --> 00:03:46,840 Speaker 1: Not until he obtained the Savior's all-sufficient, empowering grace. He 54 00:03:46,880 --> 00:03:50,640 Speaker 1: became the man God called him to be by receiving 55 00:03:50,860 --> 00:03:55,140 Speaker 1: the Lord's strength, which, according to 2 Corinthians 12, verse 9, 56 00:03:55,140 --> 00:04:00,560 Speaker 1: reaches perfection or completion in our weaknesses. more accurately, when 57 00:04:00,660 --> 00:04:05,490 Speaker 1: recognition of our weakness leads to complete dependence on Christ. 58 00:04:06,630 --> 00:04:10,869 Speaker 1: He provides strength when we feel weak, courage when fear invades, 59 00:04:11,030 --> 00:04:16,390 Speaker 1: and clarity and determination when confusion and uncertainty threaten to 60 00:04:16,450 --> 00:04:20,690 Speaker 1: stall our steps, so that we also can follow God's 61 00:04:20,770 --> 00:04:26,180 Speaker 1: instructions to Gideon and go in the strength we possess. Meaning, yes, 62 00:04:26,440 --> 00:04:30,210 Speaker 1: every battle we face belongs to the Lord. He alone 63 00:04:30,529 --> 00:04:33,630 Speaker 1: secures our victory. But we still must do our part. 64 00:04:34,050 --> 00:04:37,710 Speaker 1: We must show up as best as we're able. In 65 00:04:37,750 --> 00:04:40,570 Speaker 1: Gideon's case, that meant taking a stand for the one 66 00:04:40,589 --> 00:04:43,909 Speaker 1: true God who his people had abandoned, mustering his troops, 67 00:04:44,130 --> 00:04:49,490 Speaker 1: and advancing toward the enemy camp. That alone took incredible 68 00:04:49,550 --> 00:04:53,600 Speaker 1: courage and strength. But the Lord remained with him, upheld him, 69 00:04:53,770 --> 00:04:59,010 Speaker 1: and ultimately fought for him. Gideon's strength when yielded to 70 00:04:59,050 --> 00:05:02,690 Speaker 1: and empowered by God, was more than enough. I want 71 00:05:02,750 --> 00:05:06,409 Speaker 1: to remember this story and what it reveals regarding our 72 00:05:06,450 --> 00:05:10,390 Speaker 1: faithful Father the next time I feel overwhelmed, outmanned, and afraid. 73 00:05:10,410 --> 00:05:14,599 Speaker 1: I invite you to do the same. Are you facing 74 00:05:14,660 --> 00:05:18,620 Speaker 1: a problem or challenge that seems so beyond you, you 75 00:05:18,660 --> 00:05:21,920 Speaker 1: want to hide under the covers of your bed? That's 76 00:05:21,940 --> 00:05:27,060 Speaker 1: an understandable response to overwhelming circumstances, especially when when we 77 00:05:27,080 --> 00:05:31,450 Speaker 1: feel alone in the fight. When we remember the power 78 00:05:31,550 --> 00:05:34,210 Speaker 1: and promises of the one standing with us and going 79 00:05:34,270 --> 00:05:38,810 Speaker 1: before us, we gain courage to move forward into the unknown, 80 00:05:38,970 --> 00:05:44,969 Speaker 1: however inadequate we might feel, trusting Christ to provide everything 81 00:05:45,089 --> 00:05:50,250 Speaker 1: we need to do everything he asks. So perhaps make 82 00:05:50,330 --> 00:05:55,130 Speaker 1: God's words to Gideon your reminder this week. Go in 83 00:05:55,150 --> 00:06:00,190 Speaker 1: the strength you have. Let's pray. Holy Father, we get 84 00:06:00,390 --> 00:06:04,750 Speaker 1: so distracted by the problems in front of us, by 85 00:06:04,810 --> 00:06:10,210 Speaker 1: the weight that we're bearing, by our limited resources, by 86 00:06:10,270 --> 00:06:14,020 Speaker 1: our insecurities, by our fears. We lose sight of the 87 00:06:14,060 --> 00:06:18,299 Speaker 1: fact that you are with us, all powerful creator God. 88 00:06:18,360 --> 00:06:22,040 Speaker 1: We forget that this battle before us isn't up to us. 89 00:06:22,160 --> 00:06:26,140 Speaker 1: It doesn't matter how weak we feel because your strength 90 00:06:26,240 --> 00:06:30,860 Speaker 1: is perfected. in our weakness. And when our knees feel 91 00:06:30,920 --> 00:06:35,299 Speaker 1: ready to give way, when we are overwhelmed by discouragement, 92 00:06:35,380 --> 00:06:39,460 Speaker 1: by exhaustion, by fatigue, help us to know when it's 93 00:06:39,520 --> 00:06:44,730 Speaker 1: time to pause, to rest, and when you're calling us 94 00:06:44,990 --> 00:06:49,029 Speaker 1: to go in the strength we have. Help us just 95 00:06:49,150 --> 00:06:54,710 Speaker 1: to keep showing up, knowing that you will give us 96 00:06:55,010 --> 00:07:01,290 Speaker 1: your perfect strength, which you perfect, you complete, you bring 97 00:07:01,390 --> 00:07:06,150 Speaker 1: to its full extent in our weakness. You are so gracious. 98 00:07:06,680 --> 00:07:11,460 Speaker 1: As we look at these passages that reveal your profound grace, 99 00:07:12,220 --> 00:07:16,550 Speaker 1: may those truths settle deep in our souls. May they 100 00:07:16,670 --> 00:07:21,470 Speaker 1: be the defining truths of our life and the filter 101 00:07:21,490 --> 00:07:26,390 Speaker 1: through which we view everything else. Increase our faith. Increase 102 00:07:26,450 --> 00:07:31,520 Speaker 1: our understanding of you, our experience of you, our source 103 00:07:31,560 --> 00:07:36,420 Speaker 1: of strength, of provision, of guidance, of clarity, of victory. 104 00:07:36,500 --> 00:07:40,600 Speaker 1: Because we know when you are for us, nothing can 105 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:43,450 Speaker 1: stand against us. And we know you are for us. 106 00:07:44,100 --> 00:07:49,070 Speaker 1: Because you sent your son that we might live. And 107 00:07:49,110 --> 00:07:51,809 Speaker 1: it is in his name that we pray. Amen.