We had just cleared the gate in our safari vehicle and had gotten our first glimpse of the huge savannah stretching out before us, when the radio beeped. Someone had spotted the lions! We jolted and bumped our way down the narrow dirt road in our quest to see these illusive beasts.
As we pulled up and joined a caravan of safari vans, jeeps and cars, I saw one lion head off to our right, and then I looked to my left and another lion slunk right past me.
The lions were hunting!
A pack of zebras were contentedly grazing just a measly hundred yards away. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Would we see a lion take down a zebra today, I wondered? Part of me was excited about witnessing this real-life drama and the other half wondered if I would be traumatized for the rest of my life, from the experience.
I continued to watch this lean and muscular mama lion as she patiently watched the zebras and waited for her hunting partner to come around the other side. She was just yards from where I stood in our open-aired van. She would crouch down and crawl on her belly trying to get a better view of the zebras. The color of her fur was a perfect match to the savannah grass and I could easily see how camouflaged she was. The zebras continued to eat undisturbed just yards away while DEATH watched and waited!
As I stood in the van that morning, watching this drama play out, I clearly saw the parallels to my own spiritual life.
I am like the zebra . . . Contented. Comfortable. Complacent. Focused on my own satisfaction. Completely oblivious to the danger.
Death waiting for me to get separated from the pack. Death watching for any signs of weakness or vulnerability.
When life overwhelms us, it’s easy to pretend the danger isn’t really there. When all we can see is our need for comfort, it’s so easy to forget! When we’re distracted by busyness, it’s easy to let ourselves become isolated and alone.
And there we are, a prime target for his attack!
It’s why the apostle Peter warns us in 1 Peter 5.8:
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
We have an enemy who hungers for our souls.
And he is patient . . .
Just like the lion, he is watching and waiting for just the right time to attack.
And he is patient . . .
He prowls around the edges of our lives, waiting for the time when we allow ourselves to become vulnerable and weak.
And he is patient . . .
Never have I seen more clearly how susceptible I am and how patient the enemy is.
How do we fight this enemy? By being on guard. By staying alert. By banding together; warning of the danger, encouraging the discouraged and standing in the gap for each other. This is what the body of Christ is for. This is what it means to be in community. This is how we keep the enemy from winning!
Spilling His Grace,
kristi
What if Lazarus had chosen to remain in his graveclothes instead of letting someone unwrap him? What if he said, “If you unwrap me I’ll be naked. Let me live with them?”
I walked among giants. Giants of the faith. Are they perfect – no! Do they struggle with sin? Yes! Does busyness tend to distract them? Always! But they are giants just the same. These spiritual giants have sacrificed ALL to walk in obedience with God. They carry the light into extreme darkness. Often, they are isolated and alone, in a community that rejects them and what they represent. They walk with care, never knowing if someone will report them. They worry for the safety of their children. And yet they continue on . . .
Moses and Daniel holding the banner? Were the angels singing? Was there a line of people waiting to greet him, anxious to tell him that they were there in part because of His obedience and servanthood? Were people dancing and praising God for this surrendered servant who had finally come HOME! Because I know for sure, it wouldn’t have been about Billy Graham. It would’ve been about God and his miraculous work in the heart and life of a man totally sold out to Jesus!
As we have journeyed down into the dungeon of my soul I’ve found God so ever present. As we have looked at the darkness of my sin, I have found Him not condemning but illuminating. Whispering, “There’s a better way to live, Kristi. It’s what I died for . . . you’re no longer a slave but my daughter and you are FREE.
roots growing deep into the water, finding life and love and joy! I’m discovering He is ALL I need. I find my heart rejoicing in the middle of my struggle. Words like fortitude, tenaciousness and strength have become my prayer as I ask God to do His work in me. I feel Him preparing me for what is to come. Chiseling me into His masterpiece. I’m realizing I need Him like I need air to breathe. I’m learning what it means to place my complete trust in God and I want Him to be my hope and confidence! He is who I look to, He is who I depend on and He is where I put my hope – a hope that, Paul says in Romans, DOESN’T DISAPPOINT! (Romans 5.5 NLT)
Countryside’s dotted with grazing cows and horses. Corn and coffee bushes growing on valley floors and mountain slopes.
So today, once again, I choose the difficult road. I choose to follow His way. I choose to put my hand in the Hand of the one who laid down His life for me. I choose to follow wherever this difficult road takes me.
ur tents (literally) in the “Bush” (what we, Americans, fondly call – “the Boondocks!”).
d God. I then drew the cross in the middle of the canyon illustrating the bridge God made more for us to restore our relationship with Him through Jesus’ death. After more conversation and explanation, I asked if she wanted to invite Jesus into her life. Moments later I had a new sister in Christ and heaven was throwing a party!
