There are seasons in life when hiding feels safer than moving forward.
After disappointment, failure, rejection, heartbreak, or loss, it can feel easier to stay in familiar places than to step into the future God is calling us toward. We convince ourselves that staying small is wisdom. That playing it safe is maturity. That avoiding risk is protection.
But what if the place you’ve settled into was never meant to be your permanent address?
In this week’s message, Pastor Lorenzo DellaForesta takes us into the story of Gideon and reminds us of a powerful truth: the winepress is not your address.
Living Underground
When we first meet Gideon in Judges 6, he isn’t standing boldly on a battlefield.
He’s hiding.
The Bible tells us that Gideon was threshing wheat in a winepress to keep it hidden from the Midianites. It was a defensive move born out of fear and survival.
Yet the winepress was never designed for threshing wheat.
A winepress is underground. Threshing wheat requires wind. Gideon was trying to accomplish the right task in the wrong place.
How often do we do the same?
We carry wounds from the past and allow them to determine our future. We shrink back from opportunities. We settle for survival instead of purpose. We build our lives around avoiding pain rather than embracing God’s calling.
What began as a temporary place of protection becomes a permanent place of limitation.
And before long, we’re living underground.
God Sees More Than You See
What makes this story so remarkable is how God addresses Gideon.
The angel of the Lord appears and says:
“Mighty hero, the Lord is with you.”
At that moment, nothing about Gideon’s circumstances looked heroic.
He wasn’t leading an army.
He wasn’t winning battles.
He wasn’t displaying courage.
He was hiding.
Yet God wasn’t speaking to Gideon’s condition. He was speaking to his identity.
God saw something Gideon couldn’t see.
The same is true for us.
We often define ourselves by our fears, failures, insecurities, and circumstances. God defines us by His purpose.
Where we see weakness, God sees potential.
Where we see limitation, God sees calling.
Where we see a person hiding in a winepress, God sees a warrior ready to change a nation.
The Questions We All Ask
Gideon’s response is surprisingly honest.
“If the Lord is with us, why has all this happened?”
It’s the question many believers ask.
If God is good, why is this happening?
If God loves me, where is the breakthrough?
If God is with me, where is the miracle?
These questions aren’t new. They’re as old as humanity itself.
Yet God’s response to Gideon is unexpected.
He doesn’t explain the suffering.
He doesn’t answer every question.
He doesn’t provide a detailed roadmap.
Instead, He simply says:
“Go in the strength you have.”
Stop Waiting to Feel Ready
Most of us believe confidence comes before action.
God often works the opposite way.
We wait until we feel strong.
We wait until we’re fearless.
We wait until we have all the answers.
Meanwhile, God is waiting for us to move.
Gideon wanted explanations.
God gave him an assignment.
The miracle wasn’t waiting for Gideon inside the winepress.
The miracle was waiting outside it.
The same is true for us.
Strength is rarely discovered while standing still.
It is discovered while obeying.
The man with the mat had to stand.
Peter had to step out of the boat.
Moses had to confront Pharaoh.
Gideon had to leave the winepress.
The strength came as they moved.
God Is With You
One of the most powerful moments in the story comes when God tells Gideon:
“I will be with you.”
Notice what God doesn’t say.
He doesn’t promise that the journey will be easy.
He doesn’t promise that there won’t be obstacles.
He doesn’t promise that Gideon will understand everything.
Instead, He offers His presence.
And ultimately, God’s presence is what changes everything.
The confidence of a believer is not found in having all the answers.
It’s found in knowing who walks with us.
God’s presence is greater than your fear.
God’s presence is greater than your insecurity.
God’s presence is greater than your past.
God’s presence is greater than whatever is keeping you underground.
Your New Address
Perhaps you’ve spent too long believing the lies that fear has told you.
Perhaps you’ve accepted limitations that God never assigned to you.
Perhaps you’ve allowed disappointment to become your identity.
Today, God is calling you out of the winepress.
Not because you’re already strong.
Not because you have everything figured out.
But because He is with you.
The winepress may have been part of your story.
But it was never meant to become your address.
God is inviting you to step into the identity He has spoken over your life and discover that the strength you’ve been waiting for is found on the other side of obedience.
The winepress was never your destination.
It was only the place where God found you.
And now He’s calling you higher.
🙌 Call to Action
Where have you gone underground?
Maybe it’s because of disappointment.
Maybe it’s because of fear.
Maybe it’s because you’ve been hurt one too many times.
But God never called you to build a life around hiding.
Take a moment this week and ask Him:
“What part of my life have I allowed fear to define?”
Then take one step.
Not when you feel ready.
Not when you have all the answers.
Not when every doubt disappears.
Take one step in the strength you have.
Because the breakthrough isn’t found in the winepress.
It’s found in trusting the God who says:
“I will be with you.”
By Pastor Lorenzo DellaForesta