The Lord is with thee

Judges 6:12 "And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour."
Back in the Old Testament, Israel, after being led by Moses out of Egypt, after God having parted the waters of the Red Sea for them to cross,, and after Joshua leading them into the promised land and defeating numerous enemies..had now become impoverished because of the Midianites, and they cried unto the Lord. The angel of the Lord answered that cry and appeared unto a young man named Gideon who was threshing wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.
The angel of the Lord began to speak to Gideon and told him that the Lord was with him..then he referred to him as a mighty man of valour! Gideon couldn't believe his ears, and asked the angel why had so much come against them? Where were all the miracles that their fathers had told them about? Why had God forsaken them?
Have you ever had those same thoughts? Have you ever wondered why so much is coming against you..or even as Gideon did, felt that God has forsaken you? The angel of the Lord answered Gideon by telling him that God would use HIM to save Israel from the Midianites. He told him that God was sending him. Again, Gideon couldn't believe what he was hearing. He questioned the angel once again.. how can I save Israel? (In other words, what do you expect that I could do)..and then he relayed to the angel that his family was very poor and that he was the least in his father's house. The Lord simply assured Gideon that He would be with him.
It is interesting to me how God saw Gideon...as a man of valour. I looked up that word and it means courage, bravery, prowess in war. This was how God saw Gideon..as a man of courage. Gideon didn't see himself that way. This is such a pattern in scripture..Moses, when God called him, told God that he was a man slow of speech..he asked God..who am I that I should bring forth the children of Israel out of Egypt..The Lord gave Moses the same answer in Exodus 3:12 that He had given to Gideon.."Certainly, I will be with thee." Jeremiah, when God called him, told the Lord that he could not speak..again, in Jeremiah 1:8, the Lord told Jeremiah not to be afraid for He would be with him.
Beloved, what is it that you might be facing that seems insurmountable? ...and how do you look at yourself? How do you really see yourself? Do you know first of all that God CHOOSES the weak and the foolish things of this world to confound the wise?
Secondly, God doesn't see us as we see ourselves. He knows what we are capable of and what He has built into us that we can't see. Most importantly, He knows that He will be with us. When God called us out of Lodi, I truly saw myself as weak. I didn't think I could ever do prison ministry..but God knew better..and as I was doing the same thing as Gideon early one morning..letting God know that He had chosen the wrong person..He gave me a rhema..it was Deuteronomy 31:6, "Be strong and of good courage. Fear not, nor be afraid of them; for the Lord thy God, He is it that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee nor forsake thee."
The Lord was letting me know that He was with me. He was letting me know that there was nothing to fear. He was letting me know that He would never leave me. He was letting me know that He IS the Lord, MY God.
Child of God, whatever you face today, your God is with you. He will be with you as you go through whatever situations you are facing, and He will strengthen you for whatever you need to deal with. God would never just allow pain and suffering to be brought into your life, and then leave you on your own to face it. HE IS WITH YOU! You probably see yourself as being incapable of facing the giants in your life. You may see yourself the way Gideon did..as the least of those around him..but God sees you differently. God knows that whatever you face, He will certainly be with you. Don't forget today that..you are not alone in what you are going through.."The Lord is with you"..precious saints of God!