THE OLD WARRIOR

 

THE OLD WARRIOR

 

Caleb, the mighty and brave warrior of the Israelites was forty years old when Moses sent him on a mission along with Joshua and ten other operatives. Their mission was to spy on the land which the Lord had promised to give them. They were amazed how fertile and rich the land was. It was literally a land flowing with milk and honey. But there was one thing they discovered in their tactical scouting. The land was inhabited by what they described as giants, big, tall, strong men.

When they returned to Moses to give their intelligence report ten of the spies gave a discouraging report. They lost their nerve. They told Moses that they were up against giants should they come and invade the land and they believe they were no match. Caleb and Joshua, on the other hand, had a different view of the situation. Their hearts did not melt by the disconcerting report of their companions. Caleb said, “I followed the Lord my God wholeheartedly”. He and Joshua completely trusted the Lord and Caleb was very sure, with God’s help and promise,  they would be able to take the land. That was how positive and sure Caleb was, because he had more than enough faith.

So Moses, even before they could capture the land, already made a vow and promise to Caleb that the land on which his feet would walk on would be his inheritance and that of his children. And so after years of struggle and fighting they finally entered the land of promise. And it was now time for him to claim the inheritance promised to him by the great leader Moses who had already died, and succeeded by Joshua.

This is what Caleb the great and brave soldier said to Joshua, the new leader of Israel:

“So here I am today, eighty five years old! I am still strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I’m just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then. Now give me this hill country that the Lord promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but the Lord helping me, I will drive them out just as he said.” (Joshua 14:10-12)

What a man! Eighty five years old. What an amazing old man.

I’m an old man now. In my old age, I keep dreaming I would be like him. A ferocious and strong old, brave warrior, a man of unwavering faith in God, fighting life’s battles and taking what was promised to him.  

-RAY ALAN T. DRILON

ECONOMY OF MOTION

Even the most mundane tasks should be done with a calm and harmonious spirit that exhibits tranquility, quiet joy, and economy of motion. Meditation should be practiced as an integral part of life, not as an escape from life. Meditation is reflective thinking or contemplation, usually on a specific subject to discern its meaning or significance or a plan of action. Where there is stillness and rest there is one movement of maximum force. “In quietness and trust is your strength.” (Isaiah  33:15)

The work of righteousness will be peace; the service of righteousness will be quiet confidence forever. (Isaiah 32:17)

Gideon, The Hesitant Warrior

Gideon, The Hesitant Warrior

From the Book of Judges Chapter 6

The Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord, and for seven years he gave them into the hands of the Midianites. Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds.

The angel of the Lord came and sat down under the oak in Ophrah that belonged to Joash the Abiezrite, where his son Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it from the Midianites. When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

 “Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told  us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?”

“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family

The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

The call of Gideon, deals with the subject of fear, doubt and insecurity. It also deals with the feeling of hopelessness and despair. All of us at one point have experienced, self doubt, fear, and  despair. Some of us might have felt forsaken.

As we go through these life experiences, God’s word is as relevant today as it was during the time of Gideon. We can draw a lesson from Gideon, a man, who came from the lowest class among the tribes of Israel, obscure, insignificant, and hopelessly insecure.

The story of Gideon happened at a time when Israel, did what was evil in the sight of God, so for seven years, God allowed Israel’s enemies the Midianites to overpower and oppress them. So cruel were the Midinites that the Israelites hid in mountain caves and clefts. They were bereft of any courage to go against their oppressors, they simply despaired of life, losing all hope. 

God’s anger against his people soon waned. It was now time to liberate them from their enemies, and to show mercy to His people, who thought the Lord had abandoned them.

The angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, who was threshing wheat in a wine press. Gideon was simply doing a menial task. All he cared for was to do his work, so he and his family would be able to survive. He had no other ambition. Then an angel came, who greeted him, “The Lord is with you Mighty Warrior”. Gideon was surprised, because far from being a warrior, he was a worker in the field. He also thought the greeting was absurd, because he thought how could God be with him, when even the entire people of Israel have been abandoned by God?

So Gideon spoke to the angel with a hint of disappointment, saying, “ Pardon me, my lord, but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

Gideon’s reaction was a natural reaction, characterizing the general sentiment of his people, who thought God had forgotten them. Losing all hope ever escaping from the clutches of their oppressors, Gideon, was full of self doubt.

We too have experienced the feeling of being hopeless and forsaken. And like Gideon we doubt God’s encouragement, and promises, belittling ourselves. The angel’s greeting was heartening. The angel greeted Gideon with words too superfluous for him to believe.

Here is an ordinary obscure workman described by the angel as a mighty warrior. Not only this, the angel said that the Lord was with him. And yet Gideon doubted if he ever amounted to anything the angel said of him. The spirit of timidity has taken control of Gideon.

God had chosen Gideon despite his moral weakness. God commanded Gideon, with the assurance that He is sending him to go and save Israel out of the hands of their enemies.

And yet Gideon still full of insecurity and self doubt put up excuses. He said he was weak, and least among his clan. He appraised himself and felt  was not up to the task. Fear had overcome his will. Gideon looked at the circumstances surrounding himself that he lost sight of the fact that the God of his people is an all powerful God upon whom he should completely trust.  

Again God reassured Gideon, saying, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites, leaving none alive.”

In today’s world, we face hard and difficult circumstances, even as we fight the fierce battles of life. All too often we draw strength upon our own resources. We are apt to follow Gideon’s poor and gloomy outlook, that we forget we have a great and powerful God, who declares, “I am with you, go, Am I not sending you? I will be with you.”

My friends, God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity but of power, love and self-discipline.(2 Timothy 1:7)

Think about it.

THE UNTAMED HORSE AND THE UNPLOWED FIELD

In His sermon on the mount, Jesus said, "Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth."(Matthew 5:5)

The world in which we live honors the powerful. Meekness is viewed as weakness and the weak perish. Jesus calls the meek blessed or happy. One could hardly understand why there is blessedness or happiness in being meek, as in docile, in a highly competitive world where everyone strives to outdo one another. This teaching, is so contrary to the ways of the world. The standard of this world, is expressed in terms of power, superiority, rank, honor, wealth, possessions, and conquests. 

Mankind has been offering sacrifices in the altar of worldly success.  True enough, where would the world be without the triumphs and successes of man’s struggle to achieve? 

Does Jesus mean to be meek is for us to remain poor mediocre, spineless creatures to be dominated by the strong?

We see in history examples of men who are powerful, ruthless,  conquerors. We see them aspire and hold public office,  exercising power and authority over the lives of many people. The meek, the gentle, even the less powerful, would find themselves overrun by stronger forces than themselves. But if we look at these dominant figures, they are without weaknesses and frailties. And Jesus knows  they are not as powerful and dominant as they appear to be.

"Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth." This is one difficult teaching of the Lord to grasp, because the meek and the losers, would never amount to anything, judging from the ways of the world.

We have to find out who are the meek spoken of here.

The meek spoken of here, is not the same as one who has a weak personality. Meekness here is not weakness. In the Old Testament there was one man described as very meek. NUM 12:2-3 says, "Now the man Moses was very meek, above all the men which were upon the face of the earth."

Certainly while Moses was meek he was no weakling. He was one the greatest patriarchs, who led his people out of slavery from Egypt. He fought and contended with Pharaoh, the most powerful ruler of the ancient world.

If the  meekness of Moses is not weakness, what then is the meaning of the meek whom the Lord describes as blessed and will inherit the earth?

The Greek word used by Jesus means "gentle, humble, considerate, patient, courteous."

The word meek in both in the Hebrew and the Greek languages means - "To be tamed" in the case of a wild or untamed animal, or in the case of a field - "To be plowed."

A farmer who prepares to plant needs to break and soften the hard soil before planting the seeds. The plowed field will then be ready to receive the seeds. A hardened, unplowed soil may be literally hard that  it will not be productive unless it is loosened up and plowed. So the “meek” or the field that is plowed, and broken up, will be blessed for it will receive the seeds and yield the crops, unlike the tough hardened soil.  

This is the same concept when we use the word meek to mean “to be tamed.” 

An untamed wild horse, is a strong, powerful beast, running wild and free. Once this horse is tamed, the same horse still retains its strength, energy, and power, but this time the power and strength of this horse, is controlled, focused, and directed by the rider of the horse, so it’s  awesome power is  directed, contained and under control.

Truly it is such a wonderful thought to be the kind of meek person, whom the Lord describes. He is like the hardened tough soil who surrenders control of his strength, and ability, to be cultivated as the Master Farmer wills him to be used for greater harvest. He is like the untamed, strong, horse who submits to the training and discipline of the Master Rider, finally yielding to His control and direction all its potential force, power and endurance, following the Master’s leading.    

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