What Will You Begin In The New Year

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Is there something that is on your heart to change or start?

Maybe it is something that you always wanted to do?

play a new instrument

learn a new language

go back to school

Maybe you want to get closer to God

read your Bible more

pray more

share your faith more

Maybe you have been feeling like God is calling you to do something, and it seems like such a big leap.

I remember when I felt called to go college

No high school diploma,

on fact I didn’t even finish 6th grade

I felt scary,

I was scared I would fail

I was scared I would let down my family

But I knew that I was supposed to and the Lord was calling me to go, so I went and it was rough

I got kicked out of my first class the first day, and then was let back in

Karen had to tutor me in math

Karen had to proof read most of my papers for the first 4 years because I couldn’t grammar

But I knew that God had me on this journey for a reason

God will at times call us to do something that is not going to be easy, in fact it might be completely scary

Judges 6:11–12 NIV

The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

Lets stop and look at this for a second, Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress

When ancient people would separate the wheat berries from the stalk and the chaff, They would need to do this in a windy place for the process to work correctly

They would fling the wheat into the air and the wind would separate it due to the different weights

The Chaff would go the farthest, then the stalks, and the wheat berries would then fall the closest like this picture

So lets really think about this for a minute Gideon was hiding in a winepress doing something that would not work right, it was pointless

How many of us have done something that was pointless? Like we think that we are doing something good or worth while but it is pointless.

But lets look at what is going on right here, Gideon is scared, and then the Angel of The Lord Shows up and calls him “Mighty Warrior”, I wonder what Gideon is thinking right at that moment.

Judges 6:13–16 NIV

“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.” 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?” “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.” The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

So often we see things that are going on in our world and think, “Why is God doing nothing to stop this?” we feel passionate issues and yet we sit there and blame God for doing nothing.

Gideon is doing this very thing, he asks, “Where are you God?” and God says I am here and I am sending you.

To often I think that calls people to do stand up for something, reach out to someone, or even help someone that needs it and we just pass on by.

If you are feeling a tug on your heart to do something we need to do it. If God is calling you to something it doesn’t matter what excuses we have we need to go for it, because we see how God responds to Gideons excuses.

Gideon then gives allll the reasons why he should be that person.

How many of us have done this? we say God I can’t do that, look at who I am, or I do not know enough, or whatever excuse we can come up with.

I thought this way when I was getting ready to go back to school, I have no diploma, no S.A.T.s, I don’t even I have a 6 grade level math, but I felt God calling and felt like He was saying, “You don’t think I know this?”

God might be calling you to do something , and you might have a list of a thousand reasons why you do not feel like you are the right person, but God does not make mistakes

God does not always use the people that WE believe should be used.

He used a murderer to save his people from Egypt, Moses.

Used the smallest shepherd boy to slay a giant, and become King

He used fisherman to spread the Gospel throughout the nations

God used a coward to save His people from the Midianites

And God will not leave you, its easy to get worried about stepping out

In V.16 God says to Gideon “I will be with You”

God Will Not send You somewhere just to leave you, He will Be there.

God never left Moses

Never left David

Never left the Disciples

and never left Gideon

So the Question is,

What Is God Asking You To do?

I want to encourage us as a Church to spend time in prayer over the next couple of weeks, seeking and asking God what He is asking us to do.

Something that may help you focus in is, Each Year I like to focus my year, so through prayer I ask God for a word, something that I can set the tone with, Last year it was Build, this year it is _____

This might help set you up with the focus to see what God has in store for you, But if you are feeling like God is calling you to do something, it is time to say “Yes Lord”