I Need a Sign

Then Gideon said to God, “Let not your anger burn against me; let me speak just once more. Please let me test just once more with the fleece. Please let it be dry on the fleece only, and on all the ground let there be dew.” Judges 6:39

Believing in God, I’ve also believed that he’s interested in me and has a plan for my life. So, in times of indecision, I’ve gone to God, asking to know his will. I need a sign. When choosing a college or a career, I asked for some miraculous sign to point me in the right direction. I got nothing.

Today’s passage though, tells of Gideon who requested – and received – a sign from God. In the story, God commanded Gideon to deliver Israel from their oppressors. Full of doubt, Gideon asked for a sign. As a test, he laid out a fleece of wool on the ground and told God that he’d believe if, in the morning, the fleece was wet and the ground was dry. The next morning, it was so. Gideon, worried that this might simply be a natural phenomenon, tested God again, telling him that he’d truly believe if, in the morning, the ground was wet and the fleece was dry. Again, it was so.

I’ve always wondered about that story. Is it an example of how I’m to discover God’s will? I truly want to get it right for my life and for the blog. So last night, before bed, I put out a magic eraser sponge (I couldn’t find a fleece of wool) on the floor. God, if this is how I’m to know your will, and if you want me to tell others, then make the sponge wet and the floor dry. This morning, I investigated, finding both sponge and floor to be dry. No miraculous sign.

Like Gideon, I’ve had my doubts. I need a sign God. Gideon got his miraculous sign and so I want one too. Miracles however, by definition, are exceptional events which are unreasonable to demand of God. Being God, he doesn’t do magic tricks at my command.

How then can I know God’s will? If he’s got a plan for my life, I need a sign. Looking back, I can now see that God has provided plenty of instruction for my daily life. I’ve always known how I’m supposed to live. In my addiction, I knew I was supposed to confess, go to treatment, and change my life. Still, I demanded miraculous intervention. I didn’t get it. In my struggle, God first asked me to daily abandon my way for his, doing what I knew to be right. It was only in doing so, that I eventually got my miraculous transformation and found recovery. The lesson for me is that now, when I desire to know God’s will in some big vocational decision, I must examine my life, asking if I’m following God in my daily decisions. When I’m daily abandoning my way for God’s, his direction for my life is usually quite clear.