The Shrinking Army

Judges 7:4-7 NLT
(4) But the LORD told Gideon, "There are still too many! Bring them down to the spring, and I will test them to determine who will go with you and who will not."
(5) When Gideon took his warriors down to the water, the LORD told him, "Divide the men into two groups. In one group put all those who cup water in their hands and lap it up with their tongues like dogs. In the other group put all those who kneel down and drink with their mouths in the stream."
(6) Only 300 of the men drank from their hands. All the others got down on their knees and drank with their mouths in the stream.
(7) The LORD told Gideon, "With these 300 men I will rescue you and give you victory over the Midianites. Send all the others home."

Have you ever felt your list of friends get shorter as God leads you into a deeper understanding of what He wants to do in your life? The response of many would be that of defense but it is true. It doesn’t mean those who are unable to follow aren’t friends, some you would even consider close, it just means God says that they can’t go where you are going. Like Gideon the first group that went home before the battle began was 22,000. This group was allowed to leave because they feared for their lives and after that 10,000 remained but God said there were still too many so He tested them. After the test only 300 hundred warriors remained, the other 9,700 were indeed warriors and were ready to fight but God did not choose them. In the same way there are casual friends (the group of 22,000) who are scared of the places God leads you and there are friends who would go into battle by your side but God says they cannot go where you are going (the 9,700) but God has reserved a remnant that will work with you side by side until the victory is revealed. Your job is to allow God to do the selecting, trusting that He knows what He is doing. It’s not an easy process as I am sure Gideon watched a lot of people leave that he didn’t want to let go of but he chose to trust God. The 10,000 weren’t the only ones tested for Gideon’s test was the most difficult but did you notice the relationship between Gideon and the Lord? That’s where each of us needs to be if we are to ever hear God lead us into battle.

A similar situation happened to me recently. I do not think any less of this friend from my youth but have high regards for him. In typical fashion I needed to know it was God that I was following and three times a test came and three times God said no. I do not understand what God has planned but I do trust Him completely and I pray that He shapes me and molds me into the person He has purposed for me to be.