While I have no way to prove this, my guess is that one of the most frequent supplications made to God is for “more.” More money, more opportunities, more confidence, more peace. Praying for increase is a frequent cry of the open heart.
Perhaps this is why the account in Judges 7 seems so surprising. Gideon is preparing for battle. As he does so, we might expect for him to ask God for more power, greater assurance of victory, or more strategic insight. Instead, we witness God telling him he has too much of his most vital warfare resource; God says that Gideon has too many men. Then God starts His reduction in force. Through a two-step process, Gideon’s manpower as he heads into battle is a fraction of what he started with.
The reason for the depletion in troop numbers seems apparent – instead of victory being attributed to the military skills and abilities of Gideon and his men, God wanted to make it obvious that it was through His provision that the battle would be won. God could accomplish more with less. By so doing, He demonstrated that Gideon and all of Israel should trust in His good plans.
Precious saint – sometimes when God gives us less when we think we need more, He is working in much the same way. He is revealing that our trust is in what we have rather than the One Who has given it to us. At times He is showing that there are many other things that we are relying on, and we need to depend on Him alone.
When it seems like God is taking away what we think we need, may we cling ever more closely to Him, remembering that having Him is greater and better than anything else. Our Heavenly Father has not withheld His Son from us; He will not withhold any other good thing (Rom 8:31). When we are tempted to focus on our desire for more of earthly comforts and worldly treasures, may we instead ask Him to transform our heart to long for more of Him.
