A Life Without FearSample

Day 4: Your Misplaced Fear 

We pick up Gideon’s story on the same day God had revealed Himself in dramatic fashion. God knew fear was still a driver in Gideon’s life, so He doesn’t waste any time in taking Gideon on the next step in his journey to a life without fear.

As the story unfolds, we find God flipping the tables on Gideon. Now He tests Gideon. The goal? To show Gideon that He, God, is greater than anything Gideon might fear. 

So God commands him to destroy his father’s altar to the idol (Baal) that the locals worshiped and rebuild the altar as an altar to God. Then tear down the wooden pole that was part of the idol and use it as fuel to sacrifice a bull to God on the new altar. 

The key insight is found in verse 27:

So Gideon took ten of his servants and did as the Lord told him. But because he was afraid of his family and the townspeople, he did it at night rather than in the daytime.

It’s instructive that Gideon “did as the Lord told him.” That was certainly a step in the right direction. God’s revelation of Himself to Gideon earlier in the day was a game changer. Without hesitation, Gideon obeyed God.

But even with that, Gideon was still living out of fear. While he obeyed what God commanded, deep inside he was still afraid of his family and the townspeople. And God wanted to show him that it was a misplaced fear. 

God goal was to show Gideon that whatever He commands, Gideon can trust. And that there is no one and nothing to fear when God is in it. This would be crucial for Gideon to pull off the defeat of the Midianites.

What happens next is epic. The people want to kill Gideon because of what he’s done. But his dad wisely calls out the fact that if Baal is indeed a god, he can take care of himself. And he threatens to kill anyone who would harm Gideon.

Here’s what’s helpful to see in this part of Gideon’s story:

God knew the outcome before He even gave the command. He had already told Gideon that his mission was to destroy the Midianites. This episode was designed to destroy Gideon’s fear and to build his faith.

It’s possible to be in lock-step with God, but still harbor fear deep in your heart. And it will control your life. 

So let me ask you a question. What fear(s) do you have right now that you are allowing to control your life? Take a moment and think about that. Be brutally honest with yourself.

Now list out those fears on a piece of paper. And once you’ve done that, take each fear and tell God you know that your fear is misplaced, and that He is greater than that fear. And it wouldn’t hurt to say it out loud!