Today’s reading: Judges 4:1-24
When Barak tells Deborah that he will only go into battle if she goes with him, Deborah responds by saying that she will go. But she then lets Barak know that because of his unwillingness to trustingly take action when God prompted, God will use a woman to ultimately defeat Sisera.
“I will surely go with you. Nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the LORD will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” (vs. 9)
And God does exactly that. However, the woman God uses isn’t Deborah but Jael, a common woman who is the wife of Heber the Kenite. When Sisera unexpectedly shows up at Heber and Jael’s tent on the run from Barak and his men, Jael persuades Sisera to hide in her tent and even gives him some milk to drink. Fatigued from battle, Sisera falls asleep. Seeing an opportunity, Jael takes action. She quietly approaches Sisera and ends his life by pounding a tent peg through his temple. (Anyone else thinking here, Yowsers!)
Jael had no idea when she woke what her day was going to entail. And as she went about her day, she certainly had no expectation that God would use her in such a monumental way. But when the opportunity presented itself and God prompted, she took immediate action. Before the end of the day, Jael would be responsible for ending the life of Sisera and in so doing, securing the military victory for Israel.
What does this account reveal about God using all kinds of people? What does it show us about living daily for God? As you start each day, are you expectant for God to use you for His work? Tami
Source: Tami’s Blog
