Open Your Heart to God
Written by Eunice Monda
"Then the angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘‘The Lord is with you, you mighty valiant man." Judges 6:12
God has a different view of us. I made a visit recently to the home of one of the children from the orphanage. She is 8 years old and asked me if one day I could visit their house. One afternoon, I took her, and we went out and she was very happy. When we reached the house accompanied by the school caretaker, we found the mother seated outside on the doorstep. When she saw us, she covered her face with her hands, but the girl was very happy and excited. She wiped tears from her face as we handed her the few groceries we had. She never wanted us to enter the house to pray but said that we could pray outside.
Many cases we have done visitation, many people are quick to expose their situations for them to get help. For this case, I saw a woman who was hiding her humble background set ups and shame that no one should know or see the lack and how she sleeps on the floor with her children.
This reminded me of Gideon in the book Judges 6:11-16. During this time the Israelites had sinned, and God had handed them over to the people of Midian. They were treated very badly and had to make hiding places for themselves in the caves and holes in the mountains. The Midianites and Amalekites destroyed their crops and didn’t spare even the sheep, cattle, or donkeys. This made them very poor, and they cried to the Lord for help. This state was a source of acute pain for Gideon, and he had no control over the oppression. He felt worse and jumped into wrong conclusions:
My family is poor.
I am the least in my father’s household.
The Lord has deserted us, and He has abandoned us to the Midianites.
When you are overcome with sadness because of tough moments around you, open your heart to God and speak to Him. The wrong perspective will be replaced with the right one.
Gideon was a timid and disappointed Israelite, yet God called him a mighty warrior. God didn’t see what Gideon felt he was but what he would become. He chooses the weak to shame the wise, 1 Corinthians 1:27. May He open your eyes to see what He is seeing in you.
Gideon was little and weak when he looked at those who were bigger and strong. He didn’t feel important. God knows how little, poor, or weak you may feel. He knows what you can do and what you cannot do. You may look down on yourself, but God does not. He doesn’t compare you to others. He sees how great you can become. Ask Him to open your eyes to see how He sees you and watch how He will make you great.
