God loves to give us a glimpse of our future, so that we walk not by our human intellect or discretion, but by a divine understanding of where God is leading us to. God has spoken and continues to speak to us through His messengers and prophets.

And when I think of it, I am reminded of this quote that Rev. Shyju Mathew often uses in his sermons. “Your friends look at your past and call your present, your family looks at your present and call out your future, however God looks at your future and calls out your present!”

Isn’t that so true?

One of the best examples of the same is Gideon’s encounter with God.

Judges 6:11-12 KJV

[11] And there came an angel of the Lord , and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abi-ezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites.

[12] And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him, and said unto him, The Lord is with thee, thou mighty man of valour.

It is very clear from verse 11, that Gideon was being like any other Israelite, hiding his wheat harvest in the fear of Midianites. There is not even the slightest inkling of Gideon’s “courage” or “might” shown in the text. Yet, when God had to call him, He calls him “Thou mighty man of valour”!

God has this nature of calling out things from nothing, and that is exactly what God did here. God desired to see courage in Gideon, so He called him the same.

As leaders, we are constantly challenged as to how to get people, whom God has placed under us, to reach their fullest potential. It is by doing the same thing that God does. Call them out by God given future destinies, not by their present insignificant states.

One of the things that my wife Rashmi and I constantly talk about is on how to speak of people around us. Anytime you and I speak derogatorily of someone, even in our private conversations, we do what ordinary human beings do, that is to call out a person’s future based on their present or past circumstances. However, that is not what God has called us for. He has appointed us here on earth as His spokesperson!

Every leader in the church, no matter what level they serve at, are meant to and called to represent Jesus! You are to boldly tell people what Apostle Paul said, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.” (1 Corinthians 11:1) If that be true, then it is greatly essential that you look at the people God has placed under you from God’s eyes, not human!

Will you take out time and go out of your way to encourage someone today? Hear from the Lord about the great plans He has for the people around you, and call them out by their great names! And keep doing that till it comes to pass!

(Please take a moment to leave your thoughts and your opinions below. Also, if you have a question to ask Pastor Priji or Rashmi, leave it in the ‘comments’ or email at [email protected])