Judges 6:33-35 Then all the Midianites and the Amalekites and the children of the east were gathered together, and went over, and pitched in the valley of Jezreel.
But the Spirit of the Lord came upon Gideon, and he blew a trumpet; and Abiezer was gathered after him.
And he sent messengers throughout all Manasseh; who also was gathered after him: and he sent messengers unto Asher, and unto Zebulun, and unto Naphtali; and they came up to meet them.
So by the commandment of God, the Word of God, Gideon gathered men of war from the tribes of Israel to battle against the enemies of God.
There were 32,000 in the army of Israel.
Judges 7:12 And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.
But in God's sight, there were too many in the army of Israel and if they went to battle and won they would think it was by their own power that they won.
So God told Gideon the following:
Judges 7:2-7 And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me.
Now therefore go to, proclaim in the ears of the people, saying, Whosoever is fearful and afraid, let him return and depart early from mount Gilead. And there returned of the people twenty and two thousand; and there remained ten thousand.
And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go.
So he brought down the people unto the water: and the Lord said unto Gideon, Every one that lappeth of the water with his tongue, as a dog lappeth, him shalt thou set by himself; likewise every one that boweth down upon his knees to drink.
And the number of them that lapped, putting their hand to their mouth, were three hundred men: but all the rest of the people bowed down upon their knees to drink water.
And the Lord said unto Gideon, By the three hundred men that lapped will I save you, and deliver the Midianites into thine hand: and let all the other people go every man unto his place.
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God is going to increase Gideon's courage:
Judges 7:9-15 And it came to pass the same night, that the Lord said unto him, Arise, get thee down unto the host; for I have delivered it into thine hand.
But if thou fear to go down, go thou with Phurah thy servant down to the host: And thou shalt hear what they say; and afterward shall thine hands be strengthened to go down unto the host.
Then went he down with Phurah his servant unto the outside of the armed men that were in the host.
And the Midianites and the Amalekites and all the children of the east lay along in the valley like grasshoppers for multitude; and their camels were without number, as the sand by the sea side for multitude.
And when Gideon was come, behold, there was a man that told a dream unto his fellow, and said, Behold, I dreamed a dream, and, lo, a cake of barley bread tumbled into the host of Midian, and came unto a tent, and smote it that it fell, and overturned it, that the tent lay along.
And his fellow answered and said, This is nothing else save the sword of Gideon the son of Joash, a man of Israel: for into his hand hath God delivered Midian, and all the host.
And it was so, when Gideon heard the telling of the dream, and the interpretation thereof, that he worshipped, and returned into the host of Israel, and said, Arise; for the Lord hath delivered into your hand the host of Midian.
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Many times, God has strengthened me and warned me and instructed me by dreams which HE gave to me.
When I was on radio in 1982, God had shown me many sins in the ministries of several big-time TV ministers. When I spoke these messages, many of their followers who had once "loved me" now hated me and sent letters to my office rebuking me for the corrections which I presented.
One night, God gave me the following dream:
In a football game, North Texas was playing the University of Texas. (This was a very shocking mismatch for Texas was a far greater power.)
The ball was on NT's 5-yard line, with NT backed up to their own end zone.
There was a running back for NT who once played for Texas but had changed teams.
It was obvious when the ball was snapped, the Texas defense would crush this running back.
And I heard these words: "Don't go until you see Exodus 15."
(My schedule was completely filled for the remainder of the year 1982, but after this dream I cancelled all meetings for that year and stayed at home at my apartment. The meaning of that dream was very clear to me. I had once been in the "faith churches" and had been shown many errors in that movement so I came out of that church group. I would be crushed, destroyed, if I went out.)
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A word which I heard in 2018, was used by God to strengthen me greatly and to instruct me and to give me power to go in a certain direction.
I had fallen at my house in Texas. The ambulance medical people were moving me to take me to hospital. As we passed the front door of my house, I heard: "You'll never see this house again."
I put that house up for-sale immediately, without knowing where I would be going.
It was very clear to me that I would not return to that house where I had been living.
There was no fear in making this change for I knew it was authored by God.
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On January 10, 1980, I was asleep in the night. I was awakened by a very loud, trumpet-like voice, which spoke 3 words to me: "Hartford, Seattle, KWJS"
I said to God: "Are YOU telling me to go on radio? I wouldn't know how to do that. I'm a writer, not a speaker."
A very gentle thought came into my mind. "Call the radio station manager."
That same morning, I called the radio station manager at KWJS. I said, "God might be showing me to go on radio. How would you do that?"
The station manager told me to make an audition tape, 29 1/2 minutes long, and send it to him and if I fit their broadcasting they would offer me a contract.
I made a tape that same morning and sent it to the manager.
Within about 5 days, I was broadcasting exhortations for the church on station KWJS.
A woman who lived in Fort Worth, Texas, had been praying about a replacement for one of the noon-time speakers on KJWS. She prayed, "God, please put a real person of faith on at this hour."
When I began speaking that day, she said, "OH NO, Lord ... not a woman!"
She got up to turn the radio off, but before she reached her radio she became interested in that which I was speaking ... and she became a big "fan".
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When God calls us to the ministry, HE equips us to do the work and HE places us where HE wants us and we always know we did not call ourselves and we did not equip ourselves, our sufficiency is of God.
We just go forward doing that which we are shown to do by God.
Ephesians 4:8;11-14 Wherefore HE saith, When HE ascended up on high, HE led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men... And HE gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ:
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