Strength in Chaos || Pastor Bill Herzog
Then the Lord turned to him and said, “Go with the strength you have, and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I am sending you!” Judges 6:14
This was a stressful chaotic time in Israel. They kept leaving God behind and found themselves under constant attack from an enemy. They would plant fields and just as it came time to harvest, the enemy would come in and steal or destroy the crop.
Gideon was hiding in a cave, threshing wheat in a winepress. You know things are bad when you have to use make shift tools to do a simple job. Chaos reigned over Gideon and Israel. Chaos… Jesus promises peace - His peace in times of chaos.
Right now, my own personal world is pretty chaotic, like many of yours. I am sitting on my bed with my computer on our dresser trying to write as rockers are on the top of the house tearing off shingles. The interior is all pushed together and covered over waiting for painters to come and paint. Hence I'm in my bedroom wondering, "How in the world did I get here?"
With the outside chaos we are currently in, it rules out going to sit in a coffee shop, a restaurant to work. All closed…
I do love order. We are painting because we have not painted in over 17 years at least. I loved the colors, so why paint? You will have to ask my wife Barb. ;) The roof was old and beginning to leak. It needed to be replaced. By the end of the week, I will have a new normal. What I was used to will be long gone.
Our color scheme is totally different, the roof color is different, the gutters will be different… "For the times they are a-changin'," to quote the poet Bob Dylan. And to be honest, change was needed. Some of this change is in response to things that were damaged… outdated. We hear talk of a new normal coming to us after the virus is defeated. It will force us to update, to find the right tools to do the job we have to do.
But what if it feels a bit overwhelming? Or a lot overwhelming! The Lord told Gideon to simply go in the strength he had. Where they tried to fit David with Saul’s armor and it just would not work…Gideon was hiding and yet the the angel called him a mighty warrior.
As I listen to roofers tear shingles off, as I stand and write this devotion, as I realize my world is and has already changed, I am encouraged to know I only have to go in the strength I have. He is with me and He is my rock and my strength. Don’t work up a false image to live under. Be you… your best you. Chaos is not your or my enemy.
Our house will come together again and I will sit in my front room or at our dining room table again. Until then, I will stand next to my dresser and write. Or walk next door and visit Stacy and the boys.
Go in the strength that is yours and leave the rest to Him.
Hallelujah! What a Savior!
Bill and Barb Herzog have led the Vineyard Church of Toledo for over 25 years.
They also help give oversight to a pastors' prayer group called Merge. Merge holds monthly worship and prayer times with up to 50 pastors and leaders.
Their heart is to see the whole church walk in unity.
