Gideon hides his food in the equivalent of the trunk of his car.
Wheat, the food, was usually processed in the open where wind could take the chafe and trash away. But Gideon is threshing wheat in a winepress. A pit in a giant rock, hidden. It's dirty, laborious work. The chafe is probably blowing around in his lungs as he threshes.
Judges 6:11–16 tells us why. He's hiding his grain from the Midianites, who had raided Israel's crops for seven years.
Then he has a visitor. The angel of the LORD. The angel greets him: "The LORD is with you, O mighty man of valor."
Mighty man of valor. To a guy hiding in a hole.
Gideon gets mad. He asks: if the LORD is with us, why has all this happened? Why hasn't God delivered us like our fathers told us about?
Fair question. The angel doesn't answer it.
Instead The Lord tells Gideon, "Go in the strength you have." And then, "Am I not sending you?"
Gideon isn't convinced. My clan is weak. I'm young.
God's answer: "Surely I will be with you."
Notice what God does. He doesn't tell Gideon he's secretly brave. Just like with Moses, God doesn't deny man's weakness.
He just promises to come along.
We like to wait until we feel ready.
So we stay in the winepress. Hiding from the people who seem stronger.
But God calls people while they're still hiding. He named Gideon for what He would do through him, not because of Gideon's strength.
What is God asking you to do with the strength you have today?