Then the LORD’s angel came to the village of Ophrah and sat under the oak tree that belonged to Joash, a man of the clan of Abiezer. His son Gideon was threshing some wheat secretly in a wine press, so that the Midianites would not see him. The LORD’s angel appeared to him there and said, "The LORD is with you, brave and mighty man!"

Gideon said to him, "If I may ask, sir, why has all this happened to us if the LORD is with us? What happened to all the wonderful things that our fathers told us the LORD used to do – how he brought them out of Egypt? The LORD has abandoned us and left us to the mercy of the Midianites."

Then the LORD ordered him, "Go with all your great strength and rescue Israel from the Midianites. I myself am sending you."

Gideon replied, "But LORD, how can I rescue Israel? My clan is the weakest in the tribe of Manasseh, and I am the least important member of my family."

The LORD answered, "You can do it because I will help you. You will crush the Midianites as easily as if they were only one man."

Judges 6:11-16

Each of us might be considered an unlikely servant, just like Gideon was. The LORD gave Gideon just 300 men to help him, rather than thousands, so that God alone would receive the glory. The apostle Paul also taught that God chooses and uses things that the world calls foolish, weak, lowly, and despised. If you think you are a nobody, just remember God’s call to Gideon. The LORD wants to use you more than you ever thought possible.

God uses ordinary people to carry out his extraordinary plan.

Our Daily Bread – August 15, 2003