Little ones to him belong..

I know this doesn't tie in with my devotionals on Samson, but just bear with me on this one.. The opening title for this devotional is, yes, from a childrens song we all know by heart. It is the little ones God chooses, and for a very good reason! And we can know, that in our weakness God can work his greatest strength.

A few hundred years before Samson, Israel had fallen into the hands of the Mideans. It had gotten so bad that Israelites would dig hiding places in the stones and caves of the mountains-- whenever the Mideans drew near they would leave their crops behind and flee to safety. There was an Israelite boy in this time of captivity, and his name was Gideon. One day as Gideon was threshing wheat, an angel appeared before him.

Judges 6: 12-16

12 When the angel of the LORD appeared to Gideon, he said, "The LORD is with you, mighty warrior."

 13 "But sir," Gideon replied, "if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our fathers told us about when they said, 'Did not the LORD bring us up out of Egypt?' But now the LORD has abandoned us and put us into the hand of Midian."

 14 The LORD turned to him and said, "Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian's hand. Am I not sending you?"

 15 "But Lord ," Gideon asked, "how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family."

 16 The LORD answered, "I will be with you, and you will strike Midian down as if it were one man."

God, out of all the people of Israel, chose Gideon; the least of his family, the least of his clan, the least of his tribe. God isn't interested in our titles, our jobs, our social status. God's interested in our hearts, in our lives, in our willingness to be used. Gideon didn't come from much, but that didn't stop him from doing incredible things for God. That very night, (verse 25) Gideon tore down the alters to other gods that belonged to his family. Gideon stood up to everyone around him, even risking his life, for what God had told him to do that day.

I don't really have a big, grand point to make out of this devotional. If anything, I just want you to know that God is always with you, no matter who you are or what you've done. No one is unworthy of being used by God.. And even in our weaknesses, the God who loves us and watches out for us is strong!

God Makes Heroes

I'll admit, I'll never run a 4 minute mile. I'm lucky if I can do 5 pull ups (last time i checked) and as of yet I have not had much luck with getting drafted into the NFL. As I'm sitting here waiting for a call from the US olympic soccer team, I know its never going to come. And that's ok. As much as I'd like to do all those things, its just not what I was created for. Even if I were to train at them my whole life, the simple fact remains; there's always someone bigger, better, or faster than you.

Unless, of course, you were Samson.

There are many extraordinary men and women in the bible, and Samson certainly earned his place among them. No one else could stand toe to toe with this real man of steel, and a whole nation of Philistines were in fits trying to get rid of him. Wherever he went, nothing seemed to hold him back- This man ripped city gates from their hinges, toppled entire buildings from the inside out,  or killed a thousand men in one fight- all with his bare hands.

God blessed Samson this way for a reason: He needed someone to save his people. Samson had every blessing from God, and every opportunity to do well. As we all know, however, through the course of his life Samson chose to walk away from God, and throw everything away. Thus begins the tragic story of Samson..

Judges 13: 1-5, 24-25

1 Again the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD, so the LORD delivered them into the hands of the Philistines for forty years.

2 A certain man of Zorah, named Manoah, from the clan of the Danites, had a wife who was sterile and remained childless.

3 The angel of the LORD appeared to her and said, "You are sterile and childless, but you are going to conceive and have a son.

4 Now see to it that you drink no wine or other fermented drink and that you do not eat anything unclean,

5 because you will conceive and give birth to a son. No razor may be used on his head, because the boy is to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from birth, and he will begin the deliverance of Israel from the hands of the Philistines."

Nazirites were men and women, wholely devoted to God. Nazirites were so adamant about not being defiled before God that they wouldn't even eat anything with grapes, because of its relationship to wine and drunkeness. Everyone could tell who the Nazirites were, because it showed; they didn't cut their hair as a physical symbol of their dedication to the Lord.

Even before Samson's birth, God had decided that he was going to be something special. Samson was going to deliver Israel from the hands of their oppressors, because of his close relationship with God. Samson opened his entire life up to what ever the Lord wanted to use him for. As Samson grew up, so did his faith.

24 The woman gave birth to a boy and named him Samson. He grew and the LORD blessed him,

25 and the Spirit of the LORD began to stir him.

By the time Samson was a teenager or in his mid-twenties, Samson was feeling God's power in his life. You might be wondering how all of this can apply to us, in our spiritual growth.. God wants to make a spiritual "Samson" out of all of us. It's up to us to answer that call, and separate ourselves from the distractions that keep us from becoming that. 

Hearing from God

Althought this scriptural passage is written about fasting, it really applies to all of us in our walk with God; often I've wondered what's it take to be closer to God, and to be the kind of person he wants me to be. I hope that you can get something out of these verses like I did.

Isaiah 58: 5-10

5 Is this the kind of fast I have chosen,
       only a day for a man to humble himself?
       Is it only for bowing one's head like a reed
       and for lying on sackcloth and ashes?
       Is that what you call a fast,
       a day acceptable to the LORD ?

 6 "Is not this the kind of fasting I have chosen:
       to loose the chains of injustice
       and untie the cords of the yoke,
       to set the oppressed free
       and break every yoke?

 7 Is it not to share your food with the hungry
       and to provide the poor wanderer with shelter—
       when you see the naked, to clothe him,
       and not to turn away from your own flesh and blood?

 8 Then your light will break forth like the dawn,
       and your healing will quickly appear;
       then your righteousness will go before you,
       and the glory of the LORD will be your rear guard.

 9 Then you will call, and the LORD will answer;
       you will cry for help, and he will say: Here am I.
       "If you do away with the yoke of oppression,
       with the pointing finger and malicious talk,

 10 and if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry
       and satisfy the needs of the oppressed,
       then your light will rise in the darkness,
       and your night will become like the noonday.

This passage in Isaiah is very powerful. The bible teaches that we are not only to "go through the motions" of trying to get closer to God, but to act out the meaning of those things too. Going out and serving others is not a pre-requisite to hearing from God, but you'll quickly find that you'll hear him speaking as you do.

A few questions.. What do you think it takes to hear from God? And, how easy is it to live according to the way these verses tell us to?

This is my first entry in my devotional blog.. so please, any advice, suggestions, or feedback would be great! God bless.