“THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO ROADKILL”

A devotional for anyone who feels under-equipped

I invite you to read Judges 15:14–20 before I retell the story here…

Let me tell you a story from the Bible that sounds like it was written by someone who drank too much espresso.

Israel is being oppressed by the Philistines. Again. The book of Judges is basically a cycle: the people drift from God, they get dominated by their enemies, they cry out, and God raises up a deliverer.

One of those deliverers is Samson.

Samson is not polished. He’s not disciplined. He’s not emotionally steady. But he is called. Before he was born, an angel told his mother that he would be set apart to deliver Israel. His strength wasn’t random — it was given. His life wasn’t accidental — it was assigned.

By the time we reach Judges 15, Samson has stirred up serious conflict with the Philistines. He has burned their crops using foxes tied togehter (yes it’s in the Bible-did you read?), embarrassed their leaders, and now they want him dead.

The Philistines come at him shouting — a thousand of them. His own people, afraid of retaliation, tie him up and hand him over.

So here he is: bound, outnumbered, surrounded.

Then the Bible says, “The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him.”

The ropes fall off his arms.

He’s free — but the enemy is still coming.

God freed him for the fight.
He did not remove the fight.

That matters.

Some of us pray for escape when God is preparing empowerment. We want the battle gone; God wants our hands free. There’s a difference.

Sometimes God frees your hands to fight, instead of freeing you from the fight!

Samson looks around for a weapon.

He finds… a fresh jawbone of a donkey.

Not a sword.
Not a spear.
A jawbone.

And with that unlikely object, he defeats one thousand Philistines.

Let that settle in.

One man.
One thousand enemies.
One farm animal bone.

And victory.

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The Weapon You Have

If Samson could have chosen his weapon, do you think this would have been it?

We love the idea of being used by God — as long as we get impressive tools.

A better opportunity. A more obvious calling. A cleaner situation.

But Samson didn’t get ideal.

He got available.

The jawbone wasn’t impressive. It was just there.

And here’s the truth that echoes through this story:

The worst weapon with God is better than the best weapon without Him.

You may feel underqualified.
Under-resourced.
Outnumbered.

But what if what’s already in your hand is enough — because God is in it?

The miracle wasn’t that the jawbone was amazing.

The miracle was that it didn’t break.

And maybe that’s your story too.

You bent — but you didn’t break.
You were pressured — but you’re still here.

That’s grace.

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Don’t Praise the Tool

After the victory, Samson writes a little poetic line about the jawbone.

He celebrates the instrument.

But here’s the danger: When God uses something in your life, it’s easy to glorify the thing instead of the Giver.

We do this all the time.

God moves — we admire the method.
God blesses — we worship the strategy.
God delivers — we cling to the tool.

But the jawbone didn’t win the battle.

The Spirit of the Lord did.

Your talent isn’t the source.
Your personality isn’t the source.
Your opportunity isn’t the source.

God is.

If the anointing lifts, the tool is just decoration.

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Winning and Worn Out

After the battle, the Bible says Samson was very thirsty.

He won — but he was worn out.

That may be one of the most relatable lines in the whole story.

You can be successful and still exhausted.
You can be victorious and still depleted.
You can be applauded and still dry inside.

Don’t confuse external wins with internal wins.

Samson finally cries out to God and says, “You gave your servant this victory.”

Did you notice the shift?

From action to acknowledgment.
From strength to dependence.

And when he refocused on God as the source, God opened water from a hollow place in the ground.

Water from a hollow place.

That’s the kind of God we serve.

He brings refreshment from empty places.
He brings renewal when we admit our need.

But the refill comes when the credit shifts.

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You Are More Than Your Glitch or Your Gift

Samson was strong — and flawed. Called — and impulsive.

Used by God — and imperfect.

That’s important.

Because some of us think God can only use the polished version of us. Or we think one failure defines our whole story.

You are not just your talent.
And you are not just your worst mistake.

You are God’s.

And if God can use flawed imperfect people like Samson, God can use you and me!

And if He gave you your voice, your wiring, your story, your season — you don’t get to despise it.

You can’t pray, “Lord, use me,” while wishing you were built differently.

He knew what He was doing when He made you.

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If God Gave It, Guard It

Samson’s life began with a promise.

When something is given by God, it should be guarded.

Guard your calling.
Guard your peace.
Guard your integrity.

Don’t give away what heaven gave you just to win an argument or impress a crowd.

If God gave you one talent — use it.
If God gave you a season — steward it.
If God gave you a fight — trust Him in it.

He’s not grading you against someone else’s five.
He’s looking at what you do with yours.

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Be Available

The jawbone didn’t volunteer.

It was simply there.

And in the hand of someone empowered by God, it became more than enough.

You don’t have to be extraordinary.

You have to be available.

Grab what you have.
Trust the God who gave it.
Give Him the glory when it works.
Cry out to Him when you’re dry.

Because a small thing in God’s hand
is more powerful
than an army without Him.

And if He gave it to you —

He will sustain you through it.

The Best Is Yet To Come,

Rev. John Roberts