Why Are You Calling Me?
Scripture Reading — Judges 6:11-18
“How can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”
Judges 6:15
An angel appears to Gideon, but that is not enough. An angel tells Gideon that God sees him as a “mighty warrior,” but that is not enough. Gideon, like so many before him and so many after him, protests that he is not qualified. In effect, Gideon says that God must be making a mistake in calling him.
But God doesn’t give up. In response to Gideon’s objections, God promises, “I will be with you.” That should have been enough, right? But not for Gideon—and sometimes not for us as well.
Gideon asks for a sign that it is really the Lord who calls him. Gideon will also ask for additional signs (Judges 6:20-24, 36-40). And, graciously, God does not turn away.
As he goes to prepare an offering and set it before the Lord, Gideon receives this wonderful promise: “I will wait until you return.”
God waits for Gideon, and he waits for us. In what is often called the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32), Jesus gives us a picture of God as a waiting Father. God’s patience toward us shapes us on our journey of faith.
Gideon prepared an offering to honor God and to ask for a sign. What can you offer the Lord, who waits for you?
Waiting Father, help me to know that my faith remains small unless I bring an offering of my heart. Help me also to be amazed at your patience with my small, sometimes stumbling steps in this journey of faith. Amen.
About the author — Julius T. Medenblik
Rev. Jul Medenblik is a former attorney who was called to pastoral ministry and became the founding pastor of a church in New Lenox, Illinois. He is currently serving as president of Calvin Theological Seminary, Grand Rapids, Michigan. Jul and his wife, Jackie, are blessed with a son, Joshua, and a daughter, Julianne.
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