“And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house. And the Lord said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.” Judges 6:15-16, KJV
After years of living under the bondage of the enemy, Israel developed a P.O.W. mentality and it was being passed down to the next generation.
When people are under oppression for a long time it is hard for them to see themselves any other way. Something has to happen in them for them to have a shift in their perspective on how they see themselves. For example, in the story of the woman with the bloody issue in the gospels, she had that same exact shift. After years of bleeding and feeling weak, sick, and insignificant (because under the law she was unclean) – and as if that wasn’t enough, she was also in poverty after she had spent all the money she had on doctors – there was a shift in her perspective when she heard about Jesus.
“When she had heard of Jesus, came in the press behind, and touched his garment. For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.” Mark 5:27-28, KJV
Gideon, in our introductory scripture, started making up excuses to talk himself out of his calling.
Let’s call excuses for what they really are: lies. Excuses are lies. We need to get rid of the old perspectives we have of ourselves and trade them for God’s perspective – and watch the response of our spirit.
- The frail lady who had been sick for twelve years saw herself healed;
- Gideon saw himself as a scared young man, but God saw him as a warrior;
- Moses saw himself as a complete failure, but God saw him as Israel’s hero;
- David saw himself as a forgotten young shepherd boy, but God saw a king and a prophet;
- Mary saw herself as an ordinary teenager, but God saw a supernatural vessel;
- Peter saw himself as a rough fisherman working on the sea, but God saw him as a fisher of men.
The moment you see yourself as God sees you, you will begin to sense God’s purpose for your life. You will begin to see the potential and the ability God put in you. When you see yourself as God sees you, you will have what I call ‘Godfidence’. Godfidence is when you think soberly and with humility, and your trust is completely in God. That is what happened to Gideon when he responded to the Holy Spirit and did what God called him to accomplish.
When you see yourself as God sees you then God expects a response from you as He did from Gideon.
So how do you see yourself? Be honest and talk to the Holy Spirit; if you do not like the way you see yourself then ask to have His perspective. Practice not comparing yourself to others.
Finally, love yourself.
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