Somebody!!!

Have you ever felt un-important or insignificant? Or maybe you think what you bring to the table isn't as good as everyone else. Or maybe…you don't even know WHAT you bring to the table. It's easy to look at other people's gifts, attributes, talents, etc…and feel like you're a nobody compared to them. They're fast, smarter, stronger, better looking, or whatever. However, this idea of "nobody's" is a lie. This week, continuing our Virtue of Uniqueness, we'll be talking about how EVERYBODY is a SOMEBODY. God did not waste His breath on anyone, but rather, He personally formed each of us to be who we are, someone who can and will make a difference in His Kingdom, no matter what our character is.

Our Bible story talks about Gideon, who considered himself un-worthy to do what God called him to do. "But Lord, how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family" (Judges 6:15). See, God had called Gideon to lead the nation of Israel out of oppression from the Midianites. But immediately Gideon tried to point out that he was a nobody, "But Lord…how can I….?" He then tried to explain his view on this, that His tribe was the weakest of the tribes, and the Gideon himself was the weakest of them. The weakest of the weak. In his eyes, the REAL biggest loser. But not in God's eyes. God knew, like always, what He was doing with Gideon. And even though God had sent Gideon an angel, Gideon was still uncertain of this "call from God." He asked the angel to accept his sacrifice, which the angle did. Still unsatisfied, Gideon asked God if He was really sure that "you will save Israel by my hands" to do two things for him. First, Gideon wanted God to make dew appear only on his fleece, and then, only on the ground but not on his fleece. God did so. Gideon was the certain that God WAS calling him to something great. Gideon (remember, the "weakest of the weak") then gathered 32,000 men. God then told Gideon to cut that number down, so after a few tests, the number was decreased to only 300!! He then split them into 3 teams of 100, and told them to lay low. He gave each team trumpets and jars with torches in them. At his signal they were to give a great shout, blow their trumpets, and smash their jars. And that's what they did. The Midianites were frightened, so frightened in fact, that they attacked each other, and fled in fear. Gideon had done it. He and his army had driven out the Midianites and ended their reign of terror. And it was all because of his unique willingness to follow God, even though he THOUGHT he was a nobody.

Don't ever let yourself, or anyone else, think you're a nobody (Don't let ANYONE look down on you….. 1 Tim 4:12). Because, like Gideon (who really was the weakest of the weak), God has a designated purpose for you. And also like Gideon, we should be open to accepting the things God has called us to do, fearing not our short comings, and knowing that "I will be with you" (Judges 6:16), even if that something is "Immeasurably more than you ask or imagine" (Eph 3:20). And because God has a designated purpose for you, that makes you, like the now infamous Gideon, a SOMEBODY!! J