Let the Words Speak
11 Now the angel of the Lord came and sat under the oak at Ophrah, which belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, as his son Gideon was beating out wheat in the wine press, to hide it from the Midianites. 12 The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said to him, "The Lord is with you, you mighty warrior." 13 Gideon answered him, "But sir, if the Lord is with us, why then has all this happened to us? And where are all his wonderful deeds that our ancestors recounted to us, saying, "Did not the Lord bring us up from Egypt?' But now the Lord has cast us off, and given us into the hand of Midian." 14 Then the Lord turned to him and said, "Go in this might of yours and deliver Israel from the hand of Midian; I hereby commission you." 15 He responded, "But sir, how can I deliver Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family." 16 The Lord said to him, "But I will be with you, and you shall strike down the Midianites, every one of them." 17 Then he said to him, "If now I have found favor with you, then show me a sign that it is you who speak with me. 18 Do not depart from here until I come to you, and bring out my present, and set it before you." And he said, "I will stay until you return." 19 So Gideon went into his house and prepared a kid, and unleavened cakes from an ephah of flour; the meat he put in a basket, and the broth he put in a pot, and brought them to him under the oak and presented them. 20The angel of God said to him, "Take the meat and the unleavened cakes, and put them on this rock, and pour out the broth." And he did so. 21 Then the angel of the Lord reached out the tip of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the meat and the unleavened cakes; and fire sprang up from the rock and consumed the meat and the unleavened cakes; and the angel of the Lord vanished from his sight. 22 Then Gideon perceived that it was the angel of the Lord; and Gideon said, "Help me, Lord God! For I have seen the angel of the Lord face to face." 23 But the Lord said to him, "Peace be to you; do not fear, you shall not die." 24 Then Gideon built an altar there to the Lord, and called it, The Lord is peace. To this day it still stands at Ophrah, which belongs to the Abiezrites.
Judges 6:11-24
There have been quite a few lectionary passages about “calling” lately, it seems. Jeremiah. Elisha. Samuel. Which is all fine with me, as I find those readings to very important for us, as we wade through life’s various entanglements. These readings should provoke us to be asking ourselves frequently about our own purpose in our own lifetime. Just how is our God calling us to respond to the events of the world around us; whether those events are within our families, local communities, nation or the world? How are we using what talents/gifts we do have to make this a healthier and saner world in which to live and raise our children? Just how are we contributing to the good of our neighbors and society, in order to bring about a greater harmony among all? For me, at least, that’s what arises up when I read or discuss our biblical texts about calling.
To dwell upon the deepest meanings that these words have for us can open us up to literally hear the Lord’s words for us today; for one never knows when God will speak directly to us through those written treasures of our faith.
- Jeremiah had no warning when he said good-night to his family one evening, and settled in for a peaceful night’s sleep, that God would speak to him in a youthful dream, and nothing would be very peaceful for him ever again.
- Saul had no warning, as he shuffled down the street with the village holy man, of what was about to happen when anointed by Samuel for the awesome task of being the king that the people clamored for.
- Elisha never saw his call coming, until one day while out plowing in the field, Elijah walks up and throws the mantle of prophet-hood across the young man’s shoulders, and his life too now is off in a completely new direction.
- The great prophet Isaiah never imagined that as he cut himself shaving that morning that in just a short while he would be having a vision of the Lord in the temple, which would set him on a new path in his life’s travel.
- And even the layperson Nehemiah probably wasn't ready for the answer to his prayers of anguish over his beloved hometown of Jerusalem, until God indelibly stamped into his heart the dream to lead in the restoration of that once great city.
To settle deep into the sacred texts, and to seek God’s word for you personally as you engage those texts within your daily routines, can be a frightening experience. Jeremiah felt it, as did Isaiah and almost all the others. And God’s response to each of them, explicitly or implicitly, was always the same: “Do not fear.”
And that’s God's word for you, too. “Do not fear, when I call your name.” “Do not fear, when I make clearer my desires for you, in your life today.” “Do not fear for I, your God, am with you always, even unto the end of time.”
Seek, listen, and follow God’s calling for you. And, “Do not fear.”
As I seek, Precious Lord, help me to listen carefully and to be open for the inrushing of your word for me each day. Assure me, again and again, that I need not fear when you call me forth for the tasks to which you would have me live, for the fulfillment of your Kingdom now, and for the glory of your name.
Amen.
Rev. Michael Kirchhoff
