Chasing Lions and Setting Fires

I absolutely love this song called "I want to Set the World on Fire by Britt Nichole! My dad and I were talking the other day about how it is so easy to talk the the talk, but when it comes to actually walking the walk you end up backing down. I am so tired of talking. I am so ready to actually do something for the Lord. I want to get out there and "set the world on fire" and watch it burn bright for the Lord. I want to be used.
I am so nervous about this summer, I really don't know what to expect and I have never been away from home for two months without being able to come home for a visit at least once or twice. But I cannot let fear be the only reason for me not to go. I have been reading this amazing book called In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day by Mark Batterson. It talks about facing your fears and how that your most memorable times are your scariest times. He even says at one point that "when we don't have the guts to step out in faith and chase lions, then God is robbed of the glory that rightfully belongs to Him." I feel this is what God wants me to do right now, and honestly, as scared as I am, I am so ready. I feel so restless right now, I'm just ready to get out there and go. But if I were to not go because I was afraid, then I would be missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime. Life is an adventure, it would be so boring if we knew everything that was going to happen. I want to live a life that is worth telling about. I love to tell stories and make people laugh, but if I don't take chances and overcome my fears, what do I have to tell about? The time I ran away from an opportunity because I was afraid? Yeah, I can hear that one years down the road. "Oh, I remember this time that I almost ran into this very scary situation, but I was able to avoid. Man was that a close call!" No! I want a life that is full of adventure and stories of times that I was afraid but God helped me overcome that fear. I want to set the world of fire! But first I must be set on fire and I feel that I am. I can't wait to do something! I'm not sure what that "something" is yet, but I know I can't wait to do it. I may be scared but our "greatest moments double as our scariest moments". The name of the book comes from a verse in 2 Samuel.

2 Samuel 20:20 "Benaiah son of Jehoiada was a a valiant fighter from Kabzeel, who performed great exploits. He struck down two of Maob's best men. He also went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion."

Benaiah later became a bodyguard for Kind David, and eventually the Commander in Chief of the army. This is one of the things he is known for, chasing a lion into a pit on a snowy day and killing it. If Benaiah would have ran from that lion, we may never have heard of him. But he faced a fear. Our lions, are our fears. I am tired of being afraid. One of my biggest fears, is the fear of looking foolish. But, as Mark Batterson puts it, "faith is the willingness to look foolish", foolish in the eyes of the world. Look at many of our Bible heroes. Noah, Joshua, David, and many more. Noah built an ark for 120 years with no sign of a flood, he was made fun of, but he was willing to look foolish in the eyes of the world. Joshua and the children of Israel marched around Jericho for a week and then blew trumpets and screamed. How foolish do you think they looked? I can just imagine the guards on the walls laughing, saying, "What do you think your doing? There is no way your going to bring these walls down! You fools, just give up and go home." Or what about David, Goliath laughed at him. He said, "What do you think I am, a dog that you come at me with a stick." But look who won that fight. And Benaiah? I'm sure when he told that story people said, "What were you thinking? You're supposed to run away from lions, not chase them." But look where that got him, it landed him a job working in the palace. Who woulda thunk? "The greatest breakthroughs, miracles, and turning points in Scripture can be traced back to someone who was willing to look foolish." I want to be used by God and I don't want fear to hinder that. I have dreams, goals and ambitions, but they can go no where without the help of God. I want to set the world on fire for God, but I can't do that if I am afraid. I want to be a lion chaser, I want to chase my fears instead of running from them. It's not that I will never be afraid, I will probably always be afraid of something, I've just decided that I will not let that fear stop me from doing God's will. I want to chase lions and set fires! Now that's what I call adventure.