Israel is oppressed by Midian (Judges 6:1-3, 11, 25, 7:22, 8:27)

Then once again the Israelites started disobeying the LORD, so he let the nation of Midian control Israel for seven years. The Midianites were so cruel that many Israelites ran to the mountains and hid in caves. Every time the Israelites would plant crops, the Midianites invaded Israel together with the Amalekitees and other eastern nations. One day an angel from the LORD went to the town of Ophrah and sat down under the big tree that belonged to Joash, a member of the Abiezer clan. Joash's son Gideon was nearby, threshing grain in a shallow pit, where he could not be seen by the Midianites. That night the LORD spoke to Gideon again: Get your father's second-best bull, the one that's seven years old. Use it to pull down the altar where your father worships Baal and cut down the sacred pole next to the altar. Later Gideon and his 300 men blew their trumpets. As they did, the LORD made the enemy soldiers pull out their swords and start fighting each other. The enemy army tried to escape from the camp. They ran to Acacia Tree Town, toward Zeredah and as far as the edge of the land that belonged to the town of Abel-Meholah near Tabbath. The Midianites had been defeated so badly that they were no longer strong enough to attack Israel. And so Israel was at peace for the remaining forty years of Gideon's life.
Once again, we see Israel go through the cycle of disobedience-judgment-repentance-restoration. God warned them that short of their loyal obedience, he would turn them over to the nations. The Midianites were a cruel nomdic band that camped throughout Palestine. Through Gideon, God wanted the god of his father destroyed and for him to lead a small band of 300 men to deliver Israel from their 7 years of oppression. This is because God wanted them to see that it was not due to their great numbers that they prevailed, but because of God's great strength and loyal love.
Daily Prayer: Father, I too need to breakdown the strongholds that oppress me. Unlike Gideon, my enemy is not flesh or blood but Satan and his angels. I know that you have defeated him with Christ on the cross, but not defeat him again in my life so that he has no control in me or in my family. In Jesus name I pray Amen.