Daily Manna – Saturday, August 3, 2019
Scripture: Also regard not your stuff; for the good of all the land of Egypt is yours. Genesis 45:20
Note: Judges 6:16, “And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man.” Gideon’s attitude towards the angel of God, whose identity was initially concealed from Gideon, presenting himself as an ordinary man with an inspired word of God to share, could be a way he had chosen to test the heart of Gideon against prejudice. Why would the word of God coming from the lips of a man not publicly known as a man of God or a prophet, be treated with disdain or with little consideration?
Gideon found himself in the same situation as most of us would predictably have done. Anyone that purports to speak from the Lord would be expected to show sufficient proof in the past concerning matters in the handling of the word of the Lord within the public domain. The man that encountered Gideon seemed to carry with him a pleasant personality with a noble demeanour. This was what endeared him to Gideon initially, enabling him to be given a listening ear inspite of the anger and frustrations that Gideon was enduring at the time from the Midianites.
Attitudes of people are strongly impacted by the kind of prejudices they hold concerning a person or a situation. Prejudice is preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience. Some of the dismissible reasons that are based on prejudice could be one’s appearance, the kind of language used as regards choice of words, diction or grammar, or a perception of unacceptable personal hygiene that’s proving repulsive. This is why people are trained to carry themselves decently before others in the preaching of the word of God.
Prejudices can become a stronghold to deal with, when it comes to dealing with marriage choices between two families. Various families, tribes and nations have varying degrees of prejudices that place unreasonable hurdles before two consenting adults intending to marry. Such family or tribal positions could be so entrenched that it may require special grace and wisdom to be able to navigate one’s desire to get married into becoming a reality. Families that don’t measure up to one’s financial expectations could very often easily become victims of rejection due to prejudice.
Food for thought: It takes grace, humility and wisdom to rise above prejudice in order not to miss one’s moment with God.
Declaration: Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 1 Peter 5:6
©Author: Rev Fred Aboe
