...2 Samuel 23:20-23 (NLT2) “There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds, which included killing two champions of Moab. Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it. Once, armed only with a club, he killed a great Egyptian warrior who was armed with a spear. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.” There are two types of regret. Regrets of action and regrets of inaction. You can do nothing wrong and still do nothing right. Those who simply run away from sin are only half Christians. We are not just called to run away from evil but our calling is to chase lions.
1. No Guts, No Glory. When we don’t have the guts to step out in faith and chase lions, God is robbed of the glory that rightfully belongs to Him. Matthew 10:16 (NKJV) "Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves.” What we fail to see is that these lion chasers are ordinary people like us. What sets lion chasers apart isn’t the outcome. It’s the courage to chase God sized dreams. Lion chasers don’t let their fears or doubts keep them from doing what God has called them to do.
2. Successful Lion Chasers. Mark Batterson has a simple definition of success. He says do the best you can with what you have where you are. Batterson – “Spiritual maturity is seeing and seizing God ordained opportunities. Think of every opportunity as God’s gift to you. What you do with those opportunities is your gift to God. I’m absolutely convinced that our greatest regrets in life will be missed opportunities.” Benaniah went on to have a brilliant military career. It started by what many would consider him being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Benaniah was faced with a choice that would determine his destiny. Fight or flight?
3. Our Snowy Pit. I don’t pretend to know what is going on in every life represented here today but I am very convinced that all of us have had to face a few lions in our lives. Maybe you are facing one now. I don’t know the depth of you pit or how cold your heart is right now. What I do know is that there is a God Who was with Benaniah in the pit and He will be with you in your pit if you will only acknowledge Him. However deep your pit is, however fierce your lion is, you serve a God Who is all powerful who can deliver you from the paw of the lion. Psalm 40:1-2 (NCV) “I waited patiently for the LORD. He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the pit of destruction.” God is not finished with you yet. Wait patiently for Him.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.