Speaking to My Heart

I hiked along the trail, thinking about a couple Bible verses, and how they might apply to the experiences I had had with this vision quest. I made my way back to the lake, to the norther shore where the bench I had sat on the previous year is located. When I had taken off my pack I and gotten out my Bible, I began to search for the Proverb I had been thinking about. I never found, typically you don't find things when you aren't looking at the right verse. I read every thirteenth verse in Proverbs, and thought I didn't find what I was looking for, God spoke directly to my heart, not once, but twice.

Proverbs 22.13

"The sluggard says, 'There is a lion outside; I will be killed in the streets!'"

Proverbs 26.13

"The sluggard says, "There is a lion in the road! A lion is in the open square!'"

If you've paid attention to the title of this blog, or how I sign off every post, you may have guessed that I have a thing for fighting lions. It all started almost 3 years ago when a very familiar Old Testament story stood out to me in a new way. Since that day, I've been focused on fighting, or rather killing, lions (figuratively, not literally, I don't want to end up like that dentist who killed Cecil).

I want to be a lion killer. Lion Killers go outside and do battle with the lion in the streets. Lion Killers go after the lion in the open square. It is easy to stay inside, and there is always an excuse, always a reason no to do something, but Lion Killers don't make excuses. Lion Killers leave the safety of their house, and venture out to face the man-eater in the street.

I hadn't been looking for these verses, hadn't even been thinking about them, but this is what God wanted me to read and think about. God knows the way to speak to my heart, and He spoke in a way that was clear and meaningful to me. The realization of what is in the world, of the countless excuses that can be made at any time, not only fit perfectly with the past 18 hours, but so much of my life up to that point. There is always a lion outside, what is my response going to be?

I want to be a Lion Killer, and I believe that is who God has called me to be. My mind had not been thinking along these lines for this quest, but God knew the message I needed, and spoke to me in a way that I could hear it clearly....


Fight the lion, 1 Peter 5.1-11

TO GOD ALONE BE THE GLORY!