"Now Jephthah the Gileadite, the son of a prostitute, was a mighty warrior. Gilead's wife also bore him sons; and when his wife's sons grew up, they drove Jephthah away, saying to him, 'You shall not inherit anything in our father's house; for you are the son of another women.' ... And when the Ammonites made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob.... But Jephthah said to the elders of Gilead, 'Are you not the very ones who rejected me and drove me out of my father's house? So why do you come to me now when you are in trouble?' (Judges 11:1-7).
The world sees us one way, but You see us another. The circumstances of our lives tell us one thing, but the promises and purposes of God tell us another. On the outside, Jephthah was the just the son of a prostitute, despised and rejected by his own brothers over choices made by other people in his life over which he had no control. But on the inside, he was a mighty warrior, created by God to arise at the right time into his God-ordained calling and purpose and destiny.
Even those who had despised and rejected him, would one day see within him the gifts of God that they needed for their lives to be fulfilled. "A man's gifts make room for him" (Proverbs 18:16, NKJV). And no doubt You even used the pain of his past and all the rejection he felt to shape him and mold him into the man he would become. You love to redeem all things - even the painful things, the shameful things, the sinful things in our lives - to use them all to work together for our good, not wasting a moment of our sufferings and struggles.
His brothers had to humble themselves to ask to Jephthah to come home, and Jephthah had to humble himself to respond. But the mercy of Your grace, You worked forgiveness and restoration of respect in their hearts. With Jephthad leading his brothers as the mighty warrior You created him to be, the battle was won and Israel was saved (v. 11:33).
Lord, remind us of our calling and purpose and destiny. Heal us from the wounds and afflictions of words and attitudes against us and all the circumstances and sufferings we've endured by the wrong choices of others and our wrong choices as well. Use it all to allow us to become all You've created us to be. Give us humble and forgiving hearts. Give us spiritual sensitivity to know when it's time to arise into the moments of our destiny for the sake of our own fulfillment, but also for the fulfillment of Your purposes in the lives of those around us. Let Your words of truth determine our identity and let Your purposes for our lives determine our destiny. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.
Be encouraged today! In the Love of Jesus, Tommy Hays
Friends, please keep us in prayer for our 3 Day Revival Meeting I'm leading at Aledo United Methodist Church in northern Illinois, where my good friend Jeff Bealmear pastors. The Holy Spirit is taking us to deep places of freedom and healing among the people of this community who are deeply hungry for the Presence of God. We're having many personal ministry opportunities and I'll be sharing with area ministry leaders this week as well. Thank you for standing with our ministry in prayer as we minister the healing love of God everywhere He sends us in the power of His name! God bless you.
You're invited to our Saturday Cook-out June 11th in Lexington to share about my ministry trip to Africa in August, preaching the gospel in outdoor festifvals and teaching a Pastor and Leaders conference with Wesley Paul Minsitries. Waterford Club House, 6:30-8:30 pm. Please send me a note if you'd be interested. We will also be celebrating my 50th birthday and there's no better gift than the encouragement of my friends in my passion to share the love and power of Jesus around the world! tommyhays@messiah-ministries.org
