Excited about life, looking forward to building your career, expectant about the prospect of marriage and family… you gave everything your all….and waited with bated breath for positive results.

And then all hell broke loose… you lost the chance to get into your dream career… the rosy relationship came to an end… the promotion didn’t happen.

It seems like every dream, every ambition, every potential you once had is gone. You lose the fight for life… something inside of you caves in…. You lose direction…life loses its meaning… you walk around listless…. You are in the place of hiding… too afraid to come out and try again.

Judges 6:2 Because the power of Midian was so oppressive, the Israelites prepared shelters for themselves in mountain clefts, caves and strongholds

When you are down-to-nothing, people who seem stronger than you will take advantage of your weak position, and attempt to take everything from you. They will malign you, attempt to steal every opportunity, take what is rightfully yours, and leave you for dead.

Judges 6:5 They came up with their livestock and their tents like swarms of locusts. It was impossible to count the men and their camels; they invaded the land to ravage it.

And yet it is in our lowest moment, when we hit rock bottom that we realize that no one can save us – but the Lord.

Judges 6:6 Midian so impoverished the Israelites that they cried out to the Lord for help.

What is interesting to note is that the children of Israel had actually called this situation to themselves through their acts of disobedience. Yet, it didn’t matter to God. When they cried out to Him, He remembered mercy. God sent help to the children of Israel.

That is the same God we serve. No matter the situation, when we cry out to Him, He is merciful to answer us.

Judges 6:11 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.

Ideally, a threshing floor was an open place that allowed for the easy separation of the grains from the chaff. In Gideon’s case, his circumstances limited him to making do with whatever was available – regardless of its purpose.

The place of hiding is a place of limitation, it’s a place of just enough, it’s the place of making do, the place of just getting by. It’s the place of survival.

Judges 6:12 When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

Despite the nothingness of the situation, the first assurance that Gideon got from the angel is that “The Lord was with him.” That meant that just the fact that God’s presence was there, there was some sort of a guarantee that everything was under control. That same assurance stands true for us today.

And then the angel called Gideon by his true identity.

The Bible says in

Jeremiah 1:5 “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart…”

Gideon was always a mighty warrior. The only thing is, he began to allow his family history and the circumstances around him to dictate who he was.

Judges 6:15 “But Lord, “Gideon asked, “how can I save Israel? My clan is the weakest in Manasseh, and I am the least in my family.”

While the circumstances of Gideon’s life may not have allowed for the expression of who he was, that never changed his true identity and Purpose. In the course of life, God will give us an assignment that will unearth our true identity and birth the Purpose for which we were created.

Judges 6:16 The Lord answered, “I will be with you, and you will strike down all the Midianites together.”

But then there’s the place for us – to listen attentively, receive His instruction, and exercise reverent obedience.

Judges 6:18 Gideon replied, “If now I have found favour in your eyes, give me a sign that it is really you talking to me. Please do not go away until I come back and bring my offering and set it before you.”

Having had one encounter with God, Gideon became sensitive to hear precise instructions regarding his assignment. Our ability to fulfill Purpose is hinged on our nearness to Him, and our sensitivity to keep hearing His voice throughout the journey.

Judges 6:25 That same night the Lord said to him, “Take the second bull from your father’s herd, the one seven years old. Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.”

The greatest challenge for Gideon was to accept and begin to walk in his true identity.

An encounter with God emboldened him to take his place and fight the battle – not only for his personal victory, but for the victory of his entire family. The first assignment Gideon had was to break everything that stood between them and the worship of God – and essentially stopped them from fulfilling their destiny.

And so it is with us as we find ourselves in God-ordained recluse moments, momentarily confused, but ultimately drawing closer to Him – finding Purpose and walking in the identity of who we were truly Called to be.

The place of hiding is really the place where we have a God-encounter that draws us nearer to Him and closer to our Purpose.

Bon Voyage.