Courageous Obedience When We Feel Weak and Afraid

When fear and weakness threaten to overwhelm us, God calls us to courageous obedience. Just as He told Gideon in Judges 6:13-14 to “go in the strength you have,” the Lord invites us to trust His power, not our own. Jennifer Slattery shares how God’s presence transforms impossible situations into testimonies of His strength and victory.

Highlights

• Gideon’s story shows God calls ordinary, fearful people to extraordinary purposes

• “Go in the strength you have” reminds us our weakness is the stage for God’s strength

• Personal story of stepping into a difficult calling with limited resources

• God doesn’t expect perfection—He expects obedience and trust

• True victory comes from God fighting our battles for us

Join the Conversation

What’s one area where God is calling you to step out even though you feel weak? Share your reflections and encourage others to trust God’s strength. Tag @LifeAudio and use #CourageousObedience #FaithOverFear #StrengthInChrist to join the discussion.

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Full Transcript Below:

Courageous Obedience When We Feel Weak and Afraid 

By Jennifer Slattery

Bible Reading:

When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, “The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.”

“Pardon me, my lord,” Gideon replied, “but if the Lord is with us, why has all this happened to us? Where are all his wonders that our ancestors told us about when they said, ‘Did not the Lord bring us up out of Egypt?’ But now the Lord has abandoned us and given us into the hand of Midian.”

The Lord turned to him and said, “Go in the strength you have and save Israel out of Midian’s hand. Am I not sending you?” Judges 6:13-14, NIV

Have you ever sensed God asking you to do something you knew would be incredibly difficult, say yes, and find yourself in what felt like an impossible situation? One that took every ounce of strength you had, and you still felt like you were perpetually failing?

That was precisely where I landed, years ago, when my husband and I opened our home to a teenager with a really rough background, and numerous behavioral challenges for which we weren’t prepared. As is often the case, this situation came in the middle of an already stressful season, and for the youth, this was an emergency. We were empty nesters at the time, I was leading an international ministry, completing my Christian ministry degree, working to meet numerous writing deadlines, and preparing for speaking engagements I’d accepted long before we answered God’s call to love on this deeply wounded, and incredibly angry teenager. To complicate matters, this was a busy time for my husband as well, as he was doing a lot of traveling for work—leaving me to parent this kid alone. Adding to the chaos was the fact that the teenager hated women and, frankly, was bigger and stronger than me.

As you can imagine, I was more than overwhelmed and, sadly, often reacted to the teenager from my overwhelm rather than allowing God’s love and grace to flow through me. But, on those occasions when I paused my frantic efforts to manage it all in my wisdom and strength and sought God’s presence, I received instant peace, clarity regarding the situation, a Holy Spirit glimpse into the youth’s wounded and frightened heart, and the strength I desperately needed to overcome my fears, insecurities, and unhealthy tendencies.

Reading Gideon’s story, recorded in Judges 6-9, reminded me of that difficult but enlightening season during which I nee