One Man.

God often uses impossible odds to bring a mighty victory. What might look like a lost battle to us, God still sees the victory to come.

Next to [Eleazar] was Shammah son of Agee the Hararite…and the Israelites fled. But he stood in the midst of the ground and defended it and slew the Philistines; and the Lord wrought a great victory.

2 Samuel 23:11-12

God used one man who refused to give up to bring about a mighty victory. One man. When all of Israel fled, Shammah stayed and fought. The army of Israel looked at the Philistines and were so afraid they couldn’t see the victory coming. All of them, except this one man. Shammah knew that God was with them, something the others had forgotten.

Saul was another person who forgot God was with him and it caused him to act foolishly. In comparison, his son, Jonathan, knew and remembered that God was with him and he won a victory.

And Jonathan said to his young armor-bearer, “Come, and let us go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised; it may be that the Lord will work for us. For there is nothing to prevent the Lord from saving by many or by few.”

1 Sam. 14:6

While Saul was concerned about only having 600 men to fight the Philistines with, Jonathan had faith in God and knew that it was ultimately Him Who would win the battle no matter the amount of men who fought. It was Jonathan’s faith that won the battle, not Saul’s army.

When God called Gideon to defeat the Midianites, His Messenger called Gideon a “mighty man o [fearless] courage.” Then, not only did Gideon doubt at first and insisted on testing God, he tried to gather a vast army to fight. In the end, God whittled the amount of warriors from 22,000 to 100.

What we see as impossible, God sees in a completely different way. As God says in Isaiah, “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways.” (Isa. 55:8)

What might we do if we stood in faith instead of fear? What might God enabled us to do if we continue standing and fighting?

You can read about Gideon being called in Judges 6; Jonathan’s victory in 1 Samuel 14; Shamaah and other mighty warriors in David’s army in 2 Samuel 23.