2 Corinthians 12:8-10 Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me. 9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me.10 That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.

With Midian’s army camped nearby, Gideon brought his army of 32,000 men to the Spring of Harod to rest before battle.

And God said to Gideon, “You have too many warriors with you. If I let all of you fight the Midianites, the Israelites will boast to me that they saved themselves by their own strength.” (Judges 7:2)

So Gideon excused any warrior who was afraid or weak. 22,000 warriors went home.

“There are still too many!” God said. “Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not.”

At the spring, 300 men cupped the water in the hands and lapped it with their tongues. All the others knelt down beside the spring and drank directly from it.

“With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home.”

God’s plan and God’s power working through God’s 300 people defeated 135,000. For God’s glory.

“My power is made perfect in weakness,” God promises: perfected, completed, fulfilled, accomplished.

So in the underdog, in our greatest weakness, God’s power is most visible. Our lack is God’s perfect opportunity to show up and show off, to draw attention away from us and to Himself.

Our Prayer

Powerful God, we are outnumbered today. We bring You our many weaknesses, every concern and task too big for us. Use them for Your glory today. With Your power do Your will through Your people. Amen.