Sandy's appetite has remained at a good level. She has kept a rather full social calendar this month, which is kind of a vacation month, as she didn't teach any classes in June. There has still been plenty of work to do at school, but she has had some much enjoyed flexibility. Please pray for stamina and a clear mind as she teaches a class in July.
She is scheduled for a stent exchange this Thursday; please pray that everything goes smoothly.
In the summer Bible Study I'm doing right now by Priscilla Shirer, we are studying Gideon. He was known, by himself and by others, as a weak and timid man. Yet God saw in Him a mighty warrior, and used Gideon to do the humanly impossible - take an army of 300 and defeat an enemy army of 135,000. We learned that our weaknesses are the keys to unlocking God's strength - this is how weaknesses are blessings, because when we can not do something on our own, God has space to step in and receive glory. He can be prominently displayed to others in our lives BECAUSE OF our weaknesses, yet we often try to hide the weaknesses for fear that they will hinder God's work in our lives and in the lives of those around us. Rather than despising our weaknesses, we can lean into them and look for God's strength. Like Gideon, we need to walk into God-ordained battles even though we don't feel equipped, and even if the enemy is clearly more powerful.
A problem plus my weakness equals failure, but that same problem plus God's strength equals success. On her own, Sandy cannot make anything good come from having cancer. But through God's faithful strength, we are seeing evidence of God working all around her.
Gideon wanted to have as many men as possible on his side to fight the enemy. Doesn't that make sense? Yet God had a different goal. Besides wanting to defeat the enemy, God wanted everyone to be reminded of His presence, His power, and His provision. Our goals may be different than God's goals. But if He calls us to something, we must follow His lead. Perhaps He is taking us through a low spot because that is ultimately the way to a high point.
One more thing that has stood out to me in this week's study is that God's Spirit came upon Gideon before the battle. The author compared this to putting on clothes - God's Spirit put on Gideon as clothing. I've heard, many times, that we are to put on the Spirit of God. And that is a neat word picture. We can picture ourselves putting on God's armor or putting on the fruit of the Spirit. But this idea of God putting US on was new to me. It takes me out of the driver's seat and acknowledges that God is the one calling the shots. He has work to do, and He chooses to do some of it through me. I'm just the physical body that houses God's Spirit. I just go where He leads and say what He says, and let my hands and feet do what He wants to do. So, God has "put on" Sandy, in the midst of this physical weakness, and is purposely arranging her every step to do the work He has decided to do.
