Good leaders become better leaders when they submit to the Lord. This can be difficult, especially when God’s counsel seems to run counter to human logic. Around 1200 B.C., the Lord chose Gideon to lead Israel against the Midianites, a fierce people who had been terrorizing Israel for years.
“The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place.” So Gideon sent the rest of the Israelites to their tents but kept the three hundred, who took over the provisions and trumpets of the others” (Judges 7:7,8, NKJV).
Gideon summoned 32,000 fighting men to go against the Midianite force, an army numbering 135,000. But then a strange thing happened. The Lord told Gideon that the Israelite army had too many men. If successful, Israel would believe they had achieved victory in their own strength rather than in the Lord’s strength. Gideon eventually reduced his forces to just 300 men. Despite numbering only 300 soldiers, God led the Israelites to a resounding victory over the much larger Midianite army. Be like Gideon. Follow God’s way.
The content of this article comes from “The Warrior’s Bible” (2014) and is copyrighted by Life Publishers International. Used with permission.
