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Samson - released from ropes 3Regular columnist Alison Hill considers what lessons we can learn from the life of Samson.


 
God embraces us just as we are, and He enables us to do great things!
 
Samson had been given a gift of incredible strength to defeat the armies of Israel. The beginning of the Israelites deliverance was going to come through Samson and yet it was not recognised as such by the people of God. Samson’s strength of character enabled him to carry on with opposition from his own people as he faced the Philistines.
 
There are times in our life when we must forge ahead with what we believe God is saying to us, regardless of the opposition and lack of support. As we move forward in our gifting, God releases his power upon the task ahead, thus bringing an empowering that enables us to succeed.
 
Samson’s character was being developed as he faced his enemies. His own people bound him with ropes to hand him over to the enemy to save their own lives. We can feel that there are times in our lives when our own people have bound us and prevented us from moving forward into all that God has for us. We must trust God for our deliverance, as we remain obedient to what he is telling us to do.
 
As we move forward with our enemies on all sides God will honour it. We will begin to see the tools that we can use to defeat our enemies, just like Samson did when he saw the jawbone of a donkey. God will reveal the most unlikely tools for us to deal with opposition. These tools can be in the form of people, who we might consider unsuitable for the task ahead.
 
It could be that you are given an open door that you wouldn’t normally walk through. Regardless of what you are shown to deal with opposition, God requires obedience and humility. I’m sure Samson was laughed at, as he bent down to pick up a jawbone. He had no armour or sword but God was able to equip him with something that would appear foolish to those around him; enabling him to achieve the impossible.
 
Is God asking you to do the same? Don’t pass by those things that appear foolish because they might be the very things that God would use to achieve His purposes in and through you.
 
“But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”
1 Corinthians 1 v 27-29
 
As Samson was taken by his own people to the Philistines to be killed he said, “Swear to me that you will not kill me yourselves.”  Samson was protecting his own people from coming under the judgement of God. In Psalm 105:15 it says,”Don’t not touch my anointed ones; do my prophets no harm.” Samson’s strength of character shone through as he attempted to protect his own people; even though they were trying to get rid of him.
 
This was the last recorded battle before Samson went on to lead Israel for the next twenty years. Samson passed this test of character. Sometimes the greatest tests we face are the ones when we are in the middle of great pressure. God is always watching and waiting to promote us but it’s in the passing of these tests the promotion comes. Character is more important than physical strength or academic achievement. Character can be shaped in every single one of us, so that no one is exempt from higher purposes.
 
In the world we live in today Samson would have been in a circus or had his own reality TV show. His character would not have been spotted as it would have been overshadowed by his strength. He certainly wouldn’t have been prime minister or in any other high position in government. But God uses different scales to the ones the world uses, so that no one is exempt from being used mightily for the Glory of God.
 
The image of Samson is courtesy of  http://www.freebibleimages.org/


 

Alison Hill CF 150Alison Hill has been involved in Christian ministry for twenty five years and attends her local church in Kings Lynn, Norfolk.
She runs Butterfly Ministries, offering Christian workshops to churches, conferences, small and large gatherings, bringing teaching that encourages growth in all areas of Christian life. She is also an author, now writing her third book.
She believes that Christianity is about walking with God daily and learning about His ways through His Word and hearing His voice. 

Visit:
   www.alisonhill-author.co.uk



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