Who?

Bible trivia:

Q. What do Tola, Jair, Ibzan and Abdor have in common?

I’m sure if someone had asked me that before today, I wouldn’t have known. Reading Judges 10-12 shows they were all judges in Israel. Which shows again, there are a lot of insignificant, unexceptional people (except in their ability to have kids: Jair - 30 sons; Ibzan - 30 sons and 30 daughters; Abdor - 40 sons and 30 grandsons) in the Bible.

One wonders why certain judges are showcased. It isn’t for length of reign, because there are only two verses about Tola, who was in charge 23 years, while Jephthah, who led Israel for six, has two plus chapters. I guess it isn’t hard, though, to know why the writer’s interest is snagged by him (heartbreaking picture of his one and only child, skip-dancing to welcome daddy home - only to find her first-out-the-door welcome doomed her to a nunnery! Now there’s a lesson in making rash promises to God!). Gideon and Samson are also pretty colorful.

But, back to the insignificant judges. I think I’ll probably end up like them. Nothing exceptional. A mere punctuation mark in God’s story. Did they (I) miss something? Should they have been (should I be) more? I don’t know. In a building, each nail, screw, post, beam, insulation, and wiring is necessary to the finished structure.

God, help me to be content to be a staple, a light switch, a keyhole in Your house.