The message came early this morning before I  wanted to be fully awake, and like the blowing wind outside my bedroom window, it has been whipping up something inside of me ever since.  

“God wants to get you where God wants you to go more than you want to get where God wants you to go…If you keep in step with the Spirit, God is going to make sure you get where God wants you to go.”

The quote from Mark Batterson came via my Blackberry from one of my best spiritually-attuned friends. (We all need at least one of them.) When I replied, thanks for the great message, but I’m going back to sleep, she responded in her own words:

“Rest in knowing that the one who loves you above all is delicately tending to your day and your future even as you slumber.”

I couldn’t sleep after that. The stirring inside intensified, and I called my friend and asked who was Mark Batterson.  Batterson is pastor National Community Church in D.C., and has a built a thriving congregation by holding services in movie theaters.  Then she reminded me of the name of one of his books: “In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Thrive and Survive When Opportunity Roars.”

I chuckled at the first part of the title. It is snowing and the wind outside is furiously tossing around the snow that has companioned us since the weekend. My mind is now racing.  (My DIRECTV is out so it has no distractions at the moment.) I know there are some lions that I have been too afraid to chase, even on a sunny day.   And as I have taken steps toward deepening my faith, I have been feeling more keenly that there is something more I should be doing for God.  More, not in quantity but in quality. In spreading His love. In reaching His people with His message of hope. What?  How? That I don’t know yet.

But what I do know is that I want to live past the fear and the self-doubt, and I intend to take full advantage of the opportunities that come my way.  As the snow continues today, I’ll do some lion hunting.   I know where some are lurking. I recongize that lions can be big and scary, as seen in this photo from Jeff Adams, but the good news is God is bigger than any lion. He can overcome any of our fears and do more for us than we can ever hope or imagine.

 Some food for thought from this description of Batterson’s book:

“Your greatest regret at the end of your life will be the lions you didn’t chase. You will look back longingly on risks not taken, opportunities not seized, and dreams not pursued. Stop running away from what scares you most and start chasing the God-ordained opportunities that cross your path. In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day is inspired by one of the most obscure yet courageous acts recorded in Scripture, a blessed and audacious act that left no regrets: “Benaiah chased a lion down into a pit. Then, despite the snow and slippery ground, he caught the lion and killed it” (2 Samuel 23:20 -21). Unleash the lion chaser within!”

How about you? Got some lions you want to chase down?

Related posts:

1. Can you trust your gut?