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what does a lion chaser look like? :: Thursday E-Devotion

We have gotten excited at The Community during our Chase the Lion series.  It ends this weekend, but I want to remind you of what we have been talking about.  Life has purpose.  God has a plan for each of us, and being part of His plan takes faith, courage and confidence in God.  This is so good.
 
The study begins talking about this dude, Benaiah, that killed a lion.  We know very little about him except what 2 Samuel 23:20-23 has to say.  Because of his accomplishments, King David appointed Benaiah to be his best guard.  No small task at all.
 
What does a lion chaser look like?  Here are the characteristics we have talked about:
 
He defies the odds.
 
"Lion chasers don't try to avoid situations where the odds are against them.  Lion chasers know that impossible odds set the stage for amazing miracles."  (Batterson, Chase the Lion page 9)
 
Ever felt like odds are stacked against you?  Read Benaiah's story (2 Samuel 23:20-23) and you will see how far against him the odds were in all three parts of the story.  In our lives we face these odds all the time.  Realizing God is on our side lets us defy the odds, big time.
 
He takes risks.
 
Daniel took a risk.  He would not bow down to the king.  Instead he kept worshipping God. which was against the law.  See Daniel 6 to learn how taking one risk led to the entire nation hearing about God.  Risk equals adventure, but it also equals going up against some big things.  Without taking some risk we may miss the best that God has for us.
 
"Satan wants us to live in a defensive posture, and he uses two primary tactics to accomplish it - fear and discouragement...the greatest regret at the end of our lives won't be the things we did wrong.  Our greatest regret will be not having done the right things..."  (Batterson, Chase the Lion page 20-21)
 
He seizes opportunities.
 
In this section we went to look at a lady named Esther and her awesome story.  By taking advantage of the opportunity before her, God used one situation to lead thousands of His people to safety and to expose the wrong doing of others. Esther 4 recounts how it all took place. 
 
"One of our greatest spiritual short comings is low expectations...Low expectations is a by product of prayerlessness...the more you pray, the higher the expectations."  (Batterson, Chase the Lion page 36)
 
Esther was convinced that God brought her to that place for this act.  Guys and girls, we need to be convinced that God destined us for great things and then seize the opportunities He gives.
 
Well, you will have to tune back in tomorrow for the rest the notes about the lion chaser or this weekend the exciting conclusion to the study.  The best place to learn more about this is in the Bible and to read Mark Batterson's book In the Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day.  I challenge you to do both.

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