The Fine Print: When Obedience Looks Like Rebellion
- Jun 23
- 5 min read
I Choose God
Hot Off the Press...
There comes a moment in our walk when a line must be drawn—not in defiance, but in devotion. Whew! Hot. 🔥
A moment where we have to choose: Do I follow the patterns that were set before me…Or do I walk the narrow road God has designed for me? (Matthew 7:13–14)
For Gideon, that moment didn’t happen on a platform. It didn’t happen in a prayer circle. It happened in a winepress.
Today, we’re talking about Gideon. But I want you to read this as if it’s your story too.
This one’s for anybody who's ever been caught in the tension of tradition. You’ve felt the pull of generational patterns. The pressure of culture. The expectations of family.
And when you finally chose what was right in God’s eyes… They said you were being disrespectful. Rebellious. Difficult.
Sometimes it’s hard to go against what’s always been done. I know.
You stopped keeping quiet about dysfunction. You stopped agreeing with “that’s just how we are.” You said, “No more secrets. No more shame. No more cycles.”
And they said, “You’ve changed.”
But the truth is: you got free. Or in the words of a friend— “Changed for the better.” lol
Just because high blood pressure runs in the family doesn’t mean I have to claim it. I don’t have to take on fear like it’s an heirloom. I don’t have to wrap myself in poverty thinking like it’s a family quilt.
Just because someone chooses a career change doesn’t mean they’re unstable. I respect long-term stability—trust me, Big Mama ‘nem worked that 30 years and I honor it. But my trust is not in a pension—it’s in God’s provision.
I’m not judging. I’m not condemning. I’m quoting Scripture: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come.” — 2 Corinthians 5:17
So if you’ve ever had to respectfully say, “I choose God,” even when it looked like rebellion…
Let’s go there in Scripture.
Because you’re not the only one who had to make that kind of choice. There’s a man who knows that tension—Gideon.
Now listen…when we first meet Gideon in Judges 6, he’s hiding. Just trying to lay low. Stay out the way. Survive the chaos around him.
And yet—that’s exactly where God shows up.
And what does God call him? Mighty warrior.
The Winepress and the Warrior
“When the angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, he said, ‘The Lord is with you, mighty warrior.’” — Judges 6:12
Gideon wasn’t in battle gear. He wasn’t prophesying. He wasn’t even praying. He was in a winepress—threshing wheat in hiding, trying not to be seen by the Midianites. He was in survival mode.
Now pause—because I don’t want to assume everyone knows what a winepress is.
A winepress was a pit or large container used to crush grapes to make wine. It was typically found in a low, sunken area—often hidden or carved out in stone. This is not where you’d normally thresh wheat. That was usually done out in the open so the wind could help separate the grain from the chaff (Ruth 3:2).
So Gideon was doing the right thing (trying to feed his family)—but he was doing it in the wrong place, in hiding, because fear had pushed him there.
And yet—God showed up. Not to where Gideon should’ve been, but to where he was.
And what did He say? Not “coward.” Not “failure.” Not “scaredy-cat.” He said: “Mighty warrior.”
Why? Because God doesn’t wait for you to be impressive to speak purpose over you. He speaks identity in the hidden place. (Jeremiah 1:5)
Real-Life Reflection:
God will meet you right in the middle of your survival season—and still call you chosen. You might feel overlooked, overwhelmed, underqualified… but Heaven already sees your potential. The winepress is where identity gets spoken—not where it gets earned.
Breaking Down the Family Altar
“Tear down your father’s altar to Baal and cut down the Asherah pole beside it.” — Judges 6:25
Gideon’s first assignment wasn’t to prophesy to the nations. It wasn’t to lead an army. It was to go home… and tear down what was built wrong.
His father’s altar to Baal wasn’t just bad—it represented the spiritual compromise of a whole nation. God told Israel back in Exodus 20: “You shall have no other gods before Me.” And yet here was Gideon, living in a household with idols.
To obey God meant confronting the compromise at home first.
So what did he do? He obeyed. Scared? Yes. Quiet? Yes. But he still did it.
Real-Life Reflection:
Some of the hardest altars to tear down are the ones our families built. But obedience has never required a crowd—it just requires courage. You’re not tearing people down. You’re raising the standard.
This isn’t rebellion. This is reverence.
Respectfully, I Choose God
This is the moment when obedience starts to cost.
Gideon obeyed God quietly, and the next morning—chaos. The people wanted answers. They wanted someone to blame. They wanted him dead (Judges 6:30).
But watch what happened…His father, Joash—the same man who built the altar—defended him.
He said, “If Baal really is a god, let him defend himself.” (Judges 6:31)
What?! The very act that looked like rebellion was the spark for somebody else’s breakthrough.
Real-Life Reflection:
Choosing God may isolate you. But it may also inspire someone watching from the sidelines. Gideon didn’t explain himself. He didn’t defend his decision. He let obedience speak. And that was enough.
Becoming What God Called You
By Judges 7, we see a different Gideon. He’s still human. He still asks for signs (Judges 6:36–40). But now… he’s leading an army.
300 men. Against thousands. No swords. Just trumpets, jars, and torches.
Because this wasn’t about strategy. This was about surrender.
God told him in Judges 7:2,“You have too many men… Israel might boast that their own strength saved them.”
This was a setup for God to get the glory. And Gideon was the vessel.
Real-Life Reflection:
You may not feel ready—but God’s not asking for perfection. He’s asking for obedience. He’s asking for your “yes.” And as you keep walking, you’ll become the very thing He called you from the beginning.
Mighty warrior.
Prayer
Lord, give me the courage to choose You—even when it’s hard. Even when it’s misunderstood. Help me obey You with a heart that honors others but follows You above all. Break every cycle in me that doesn’t reflect Your truth. Tear down every altar I’ve inherited or built that keeps me from Your presence. Call me by name, and help me live into who You say I am. I surrender—respectfully, boldly, and fully. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Talk to you next week mighty warrior!
Conclusion
Gideon’s life teaches us that being set apart will often mean being misunderstood. But when you say, “Respectfully, I choose God,” you’re not rebelling. You’re aligning your life with the One who called you.
And like Gideon, you’ll become what Heaven always knew you were—A mighty warrior.
