Throw out the Fleece!

Remember the story of Gideon and the fleece? God called Gideon to be Israel’s deliverer. The Lord assured him on numerous occasions that He would be with him and allow him to strike down all the Midianites in battle. Gideon needed visible signs though…lots of them. First he asked for a sign that it was really the Lord who was speaking to him. So God obliged him and consumed the sacrifice with fire that Gideon prepared. With much excitement Gideon realized that he had seen the angel of the Lord face to face! (Judges 6:22). God again assured him that he would not die and told him not to be afraid. But his emotions got the best of him and being wary and unconfident, he chose to ask God again for clarity and assurance. He told God that he would lay out a fleece on the threshing floor and if dew was only on the fleece and the ground was dry then he would know for sure that God would save Israel by his hand. Once again, God granted his request. A third time Gideon asked to make one more request and this time if the fleece was dry and the ground was covered with dew, then he would know for absolute certain that God was indeed going to save Israel by his hand. Wow! Three times Gideon requested signs from God regarding the same matter. Was he putting God to the test or was he simply asking for reassurance and confirmation? One might say that his motive was right, but maybe his approach or method was a little less than ideal.

I personally don’t think there is anything wrong with asking God for guidance. In fact, God welcomes it. But could it be that continually demanding extra signs is an indication of unbelief? Or was Gideon’s faith just a little weak? Maybe he really didn’t think that God could do all that He said He would. In my own Christian walk I have learned that there are degrees to faith. As a new believer, I’d often make special requests of God to confirm in my heart that it was His voice I heard. Often I would not believe unless I had some visible sign or great manifestation or feeling. God was so gracious to me and understood that I needed more tangible evidence of His presence or answer to prayer. So, I too, put out my fleece. Although this is true faith, it is imperfect faith. It seems to always look for some token or feeling beside the Word of God. An advance in faith is when we can believe and trust God without needing “proof” or experiencing overwhelming emotions all the time. The highest form of faith believes and trusts God and His Word when all circumstances, emotions, people, and human reason urge to the contrary. God gave us His Word and it is truly the greatest means of guidance and wisdom that we have available to us. It is His complete and fully revealed truth. What else do we need? I must admit that I vacillate between the three types of faith. Sometimes, my faith is so strong that I just know because I know. God has proved Himself faithful to me over and over again and no amount of emotion or tangible sign will make me love or trust Him more than I already do. Then at other times, I seem to be like Gideon and I want confirmation over and over again before I will budge. Is it really you, Lord? Can you please just give me another sign and then I’ll do what you want.

While I know that God’s answers to our prayers are sometimes clearly evident, sometimes He allows us to go through seasons of “waiting”. Maybe it is in these waiting periods when He just wants us to lay our burdens down, sit at His feet, seek Him alone, and bask in His presence. Maybe we don’t need all that fleece. Can it be that just being still and knowing that He is God is sufficient enough? Can it be that just believing He loves us is truly all we need? Sure, there may be times when we need to know for certain that we have heard from God before we act, especially on important matters, but let us not make that an excuse for inactivity or disobedience. Sometimes fear makes us want to wait for more confirmation. While God is often gracious enough to give us these visible signs, if we come to expect or demand them we are keeping ourselves from growing in our faith.

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. Heb 11:1

Remember that relying only on “putting out fleeces” is a poor decision-making method. When we do this we put limitations on God. We are asking Him to fit into our expectations and then bless our methods. I think God prefers we seek after Him with all of our hearts through prayer and Bible study. He tells us to ask, seek, and knock. If we do, we’ll get all the answers, wisdom and guidance we need. And although we may still pull it out occasionally, we’ll actually be okay without the fleece!

Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Matthew 7:7-8

But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Matthew 6:33