our daily bread

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Dexu Xia

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May 3, 2017, 2:22:53 AM5/3/17

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Questions for God

Go with the strength you have . . . . I will be with you. nlt Judges 6:14, 16

What would you do if the Lord showed up in the middle of your workday with a message? This happened to Gideon, one of the ancient Israelites. “The angel of the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘Mighty hero, the Lord is with you!’ ” Gideon could have responded with a wordless nod and gulp, but instead he said, “If the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us?” (Judg. 6:12–13 nlt). Gideon wanted to know why it seemed as if God had abandoned His people.

God didn’t answer that question. After Gideon had endured seven years of enemy attacks, starvation, and hiding in caves, God didn’t explain why He never intervened. God could have revealed Israel’s past sin as the reason, but instead He gave Gideon hope for the future. God said, “Go with the strength you have . . . . I will be with you. And you will destroy the Midianites” (vv.14, 16 nlt).

Lord, I am reaching out to You for the peace I need.

Do you ever wonder why God has allowed suffering in your life? Instead of answering that specific question, God may satisfy you with His nearness today and remind you that you can rely on His strength when you feel weak. When Gideon finally believed that God was with him and would help him, he built an altar and called it “The Lord Is Peace” (v. 24).

There is peace in knowing that whatever we do and wherever we go, we go with God who promised never to leave or forsake His followers.

For help, read Why? Seeing God in Our Pain at discoveryseries.org/cb151.

What could be better than getting answers to our why questions? Trusting a good and powerful God.

为什么？

你靠着你这能力去……我与你同在。-士师记6章14、16节

如果上帝在你工作时显现，并对你说话，你会有什么反应呢？基甸，这位旧约时代的以色列人就有这样的经验。“耶和华的使者向基甸显现，对他说：‘大能的勇士啊，耶和华与你同在！’”基甸的回应不是大吃一惊或点头表示认同，而是提出疑问，他说：“主啊，耶和华若与我们同在，我们何致遭遇这一切事呢？”（士师记6章12-13节）基甸想知道，为什么上帝好像遗弃了祂的百姓。

上帝并没有回答他的问题。那时基甸与百姓遭受敌人的攻击，忍受饥饿，躲在山洞已经达七年之久，但上帝没有解释祂为什么没有介入。上帝大可明说以色列人过去所犯的罪，就是他们受苦的原因，但上帝的回答却给基甸一个盼望，祂说：“你靠着你这能力去……我与你同在，你就必击打米甸人，如击打一人一样。”（14、16节）

你是否也曾想过，上帝为什么要让你经历苦难？上帝或许不会直接回答这个问题，但祂可能会让你今天更体会祂的同在，让你知道，你在软弱时可以完全信靠祂。当基甸完全相信上帝与他同在，并会帮助他时，他就为耶和华筑了一座坛，起名叫“耶和华沙龙”，意思是“耶和华赐平安”（24节）。

真平安是知道上帝已经应许，祂永远不会离弃祂的子民。无论我们做什么或往哪里去，祂永远与我们同在。