Don't be swayed by the title number
Judges (18) Don't be swayed by the numbers (Judges 7:9-25)
<Have strong faith>
When Gideon chose 300 warriors that night, God gave a reassuring message (verse 9). “Gideon! Arise, go down to the camp of Midian! I have handed it over to you!” But the enemy must still be afraid to face as many Midianites as a swarm of locusts with 300 men. At that time, God told Gideon that he and his servant Burah would go to the Midianite camp and listen to what the Midianites had to say, and his hand would become strong. So, he and his subordinate Burah went down near the camp where the Midianite army was (verses 10-11).
When Gideon reached the camp of Midian, a Midianite soldier told his friend his dream. Believers should not attach too much meaning to their dreams and should put the Word ahead of their dreams, but sometimes there are dreams that contain the message of God. The dream in the text is just such a dream. What is your dream? It was a dream in which a loaf of barley loaves rolled into the Midianite camp and overthrew the Midianite tent (verse 13). Barley bread, a lowly food, symbolizes needy Israel or Gideon from a lowly family.
The dream was heard and interpreted by a friend of the soldier (verse 14). "Hey! The bread symbolizes the sword of Gideon the son of Joash the Israelite. The dream must mean that God has given Midian and all his camps into his hand.” The interpretation shows that fear of Gideon was widespread among the Midianite soldiers at that time. Gideon was afraid of Midian, but Midian was even more afraid of Gideon. Do not be too afraid of problems and enemies in life. Don't forget that the other person is more afraid than you are.
When Gideon heard the dream and the interpretation, he worshiped God and returned to the camp of Israel, boldly proclaiming in faith (verse 15). “Wake up! God has delivered Midian and all its camps into your hands!” Gideon regarded the opposing soldier's dream and interpretation of barley bread as a kind of token that he promised victory, so he had the courage to move the army. Morale is more important than weapons in warfare. At that time, Gideon realized that the morale of the Midianites had fallen greatly, and, confident of victory, he moved his army and finally achieved a great victory with a small number of soldiers.
< Don't be swayed by numbers >
As I go through life, I hear someone decide to leave me. In that case, don't ask him to stay unconditionally, but leave it to God's will. Forcing someone to leave will only prolong the unavoidable event for a while. You must also have the faith and wisdom to know how to say good-bye in a situation where you have to say goodbye. When God causes someone to leave, it is a measure to send a new person and give him something new.
Do not try to fight ‘change’ and do not fight against God’s will that leads to ‘change’. Don't be so shocked by a breakup that you lose hope for tomorrow. Embrace change with ease. Nothing is permanent in this world. God always puts the right person at the right time and allows the right meeting. People are not ‘objects to depend on’, but only ‘objects to love’. So the Lord did not entrust himself to the crowd.
When Gideon first raised his army, 32,000 people gathered at the beginning. At that time, God said there were too many people and made all those who were afraid to leave. Then 22,000 people left. I thought God would comfort me in the face of such discouragement, but instead of comforting me, he said that the remaining 10,000 people were too many, and I made 9700 people leave. In the end, there were only 300 left. How disappointed would you be? However, God allowed the remaining 300 men to defeat hundreds of thousands of Midianites.
Sometimes God lets someone go. This is because you will get the best that God has planned for you. So don't be too discouraged when someone leaves me. When you accept the situation by faith, it is not a retreat in your life, but a step forward into a new field of blessing. What is belief? Even though it is impossible for human mind to comprehend it, God's will and plan say, "Amen!" is to do