Judith 10:6-10: a reflection

6They went out to the gate of the city of Bethulia, and found Ozias and the elders of the city, Chabris and Charmis standing by it. 7But when they saw her, that her countenance was altered and her apparel was changed, they were greatly astonished by her beauty and said to her, 8“May the God of our fathers give you favor, and accomplish your purposes to the glory of the children of Israel, and to the exaltation of Jerusalem.” Then she worshiped God, 9and said to them, “Command that they open the gate of the city for me, and I will go out to accomplish the things you spoke with me about.” And they commanded the young men to open to her, as she had spoken; 10and they did so. Then Judith went out, she, and her handmaid with her. The men of the city watched her until she had gone down the mountain, until she had passed the valley, and they could see her no more.

Before setting out on a dangerous and daunting undertaking, Judith worships God, and the elders bless her that God would accomplish her purpose, so that she goes out having first committed the task to God. Then she worshiped God, the account says, and asked that the gate be opened for her, that she might go out to accomplish what she had purposed. Judith was about to go out from the safety of the city into great danger, to attempt something hard and risky for her people. But before she set out, she did not simply rely on her own courage or plan; she worshiped God, and the elders prayed that God would give her favor and accomplish her purpose. She went out having first committed the undertaking to God in worship and prayer. This shows committing a hard task to God in worship and prayer before setting out. Before a hard task, commit it to God in worship and prayer. Do not set out on a daunting undertaking relying only on your own resources. Seek God's favor and help before you begin. Let worship and prayer precede your hard undertakings.

Notice what Judith did before she set out. She faced a daunting and dangerous task, going out from safety into peril for the sake of her people. She might have simply steeled her nerve, made her plan, and gone. But before she went, she worshiped God; and the elders blessed her, praying that God would give her favor and accomplish her purpose. Only then did she go out to attempt what she had set herself to do. She began the undertaking not in her own strength alone, but having committed it to God in worship and prayer, seeking his help and favor. This holds a lesson about how we approach the hard and daunting things we must do. When we face a difficult undertaking, a hard task, a risky venture, something that daunts us, we can be tempted to rely simply on our own resources, our own courage, planning, and effort, and to plunge in without first turning to God. But there is a better way, the way Judith took: to commit the task to God first, in worship and prayer, seeking his favor, his help, his blessing on what we are about to attempt. To begin a hard undertaking having first committed it to God is to begin rightly, not in our own strength alone, but in reliance on him. We do well, before we set out on hard undertakings, to commit them to God in worship and prayer, seeking his help rather than relying only on ourselves. Commit your hard undertakings to God in worship and prayer before you begin. Do not plunge into a daunting task relying only on your own resources. Seek God's favor and help before you set out. Begin the hard thing having first committed it to God.

That is worth taking to heart, for we do well to commit our hard tasks to God in worship and prayer before setting out, as Judith worshiped God before going out to her dangerous task. We can rely simply on our own courage and plunge in; but Judith worshiped God and sought his favor before she went out to attempt what she had purposed. Commit it first. Before you set out on a daunting undertaking, do not rely only on your own resources; commit it to God in worship and prayer, seeking his help and favor. Before you set out on a hard or daunting undertaking, commit it to God in worship and prayer, seeking his favor and help rather than relying only on your own resources, as before setting out on a dangerous undertaking Judith worshiped God and the elders blessed her that God would accomplish her purpose, so that she went out having first committed the task to God, since she worshiped God and asked that the gate be opened that she might go out to accomplish what she had purposed; for Judith was about to go out from safety into great danger to attempt something hard and risky for her people, but before she set out she did not simply rely on her own courage or plan but worshiped God, and the elders prayed that God would give her favor and accomplish her purpose, so that she went out having first committed the undertaking to God, which holds a lesson about how we approach the hard and daunting things we must do, since when we face a difficult undertaking or risky venture that daunts us we can be tempted to rely simply on our own resources, courage, planning, and effort and to plunge in without first turning to God, but there is a better way, to commit the task to God first in worship and prayer, seeking his favor, help, and blessing on what we are about to attempt, so that to begin a hard undertaking having first committed it to God is to begin rightly, not in our own strength alone but in reliance on him, and we do well to do so.

Lord, before setting out on a dangerous and daunting undertaking, Judith worships you, and the elders bless her that you would accomplish her purpose, so that she goes out having first committed the task to you. Then she worshiped God, the account says, and asked that the gate be opened for her, that she might go out to accomplish what she had purposed. Judith was about to go out from the safety of the city into great danger, to attempt something hard and risky for her people. But before she set out, she did not simply rely on her own courage or plan; she worshiped you, and the elders prayed that you would give her favor and accomplish her purpose. She went out having first committed the undertaking to you in worship and prayer. Show me what Judith did before she set out. She faced a daunting and dangerous task. She might have simply steeled her nerve, made her plan, and gone. But before she went, she worshiped you; and the elders prayed that you would give her favor and accomplish her purpose. Only then did she go out. She began the undertaking not in her own strength alone, but having committed it to you in worship and prayer, seeking your help and favor. This holds a lesson about how I approach the hard and daunting things I must do. When I face a difficult undertaking, a risky venture, something that daunts me, I can be tempted to rely simply on my own resources, my own courage, planning, and effort, and to plunge in without first turning to you. But there is a better way, the way Judith took: to commit the task to you first, in worship and prayer, seeking your favor, your help, your blessing on what I am about to attempt. To begin a hard undertaking having first committed it to you is to begin rightly, not in my own strength alone, but in reliance on you. Take that to my heart. Before I set out on a hard or daunting undertaking, keep me from relying only on my own resources and plunging in; help me commit it to you first, Lord, in worship and prayer, seeking your favor and help, that I may begin the hard thing having first committed it to you, in reliance on you and not on myself alone.