Gideon had become addicted to hearing from God—so much so, that he prioritized hearing God over God Himself.
Priscilla Shirer (Gideon study)
Can we say ouch?! When I read this recently, my words got stuck in my throat!
Cousin Priscilla came for me! As the saying goes the truth hurts, but it will also set you free–when you know it (John 8:32)!
I just finished the Gideon study by Priscilla Shirer and I highly recommend it. It will challenge, convict, and encourage you all at the same time. That particular sentence above, however, was very convicting, but in a good way. I began to think about how many times I have gone to God, wanting to get an answer, pleading for some relief from my pain, or needing Him to move on a situation for me.
Let me just say that there is absolutely nothing wrong with going to Him for these things. In fact, He really is the only One who can do anything about our pain, can provide the best wisdom or shift a situation around for us. Yet, I had to be honest with myself in that moment and realize that I had not been treating the Lord right. I, like Gideon, often sought the Lord more to hear from Him rather than for God Himself.
What good is it if I get an answer from Him, but miss the most important part of it all…the intimacy and drawing even closer to Him in relationship? If we desire answered prayers, what He can give us or do for us more than the true honor and privilege of knowing Him, we have missed it. Paul said it best:
…Because of Christ. Yes, all the things I once thought were so important are gone from my life. Compared to the high privilege of knowing Christ Jesus as My Master, firsthand, everything I once thought I had going for me is insignificant—dog dung. I’ve dumped it all in the trash so that I could embrace Christ and be embraced by Him.
Philippians 3:7-8, MSG
That’s right! Paul said it–dog dung. Knowing Christ and God Himself is better than dog poop! Everything else is insignificant compared to knowing Him. May we not miss this beautiful truth while we are waiting. It really isn’t so much about what we are waiting on or for, but the true prize is what we have gained in the process–knowing Jesus in intimacy and thus, wanting more of Him and drawing closer to Him. It is being able to release everything I have been waiting on so I can fully “embrace Christ and be embraced by Him”. If I am holding on more tightly to hearing from God or onto something I’m waiting on Him to give me, it’s kind of hard to embrace Him.
This is the beauty of prayer though. Sometimes, when we go to God for one thing, we come out of prayer having forgotten what we initially needed prayer for. Instead, we end up worshipping Him because of the intimacy we experienced with simply being in His presence. He IS just that good!
Sis, in this brand new month, may you fully experience the Lord Himself, in ways you never imagined, and may you not fall into Gideon’s plight, or mine, but go relentlessly after God Himself in this season of waiting!
Genesis 2:22, NLT
Scripture references: The Holy Bible (NLT, MSG)
References: [Priscilla Shirer (2013). Gideon: Your Weakness. God’s Strength. LifeWay Press. Retrieved from https://read.lifeway.com%5D
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Lady In Waiting 222 