It’s Time. Focus In and Be Brave.

Why is it so hard to be brave?

Is it our personality type, our culture, our upbringing?

I’ve rejected the option to be brave countless times: at the car dealership, on the diving board, in the classroom, and on and on. Few of those times keep me up at night. But there are some missed opportunities that do.

I’m sure you know the feeling too. Times we could’ve stood up for someone but didn’t. Times we could’ve stood up for ourselves, but didn’t. Times we knew we should pray with someone, but didn’t. Times we should’ve gotten in the car and driven to that person, but didn’t.

I’m sure each of our lives are littered with missed opportunities, and so I feel like the nagging question then becomes-

What does it take to be brave?

I know we can do it. I believe God has created us to be brave. I know you and I are more capable than we realize.

You know it too don’t you? You feel the same thing I do. It’s that sense that the status quo we’ve been living in is not what life is about. That feeling in your stomach that there is more, that God is more, that intuition that we were created to see and know more than we’re presently experiencing.

It is from that place in my soul that I write to you today.

I definitely don’t have all the answers! However, I want to invite you in on the journey I am on. The journey to be brave and live courageously. In that vain, I want to share with you three conclusions I’ve recently come to. I’m convinced these three truths are crucial for us to comprehend if we are to live the courageous lives God has intended us to live. I hope you’ll allow these truths to sink deep into your mind and penetrate your soul.

Ready? It begins with Planet Earth. Anyone else love this show?

We recently watched an episode which included lions. It showed the lions playing, hunting, growing; all the beautiful scenes the average person would never be able to observe. All three of my observations on being brave came from learning about how lions hunt.

First, I was struck by the way lions focus when they’re hunting. They stare intently at their prey. They aren’t distracted by a fly on their nose, or a mouse on their tail. Their gaze is fixed and unmovable.

It reminded me of my years doing gymnastics. While I would’ve loved to have been great at the bars or floor, my best event was the balance beam. And there’s one thing that is key to the beam. If you want to do anything more than stand there, you must look at the end of the beam. Before and after a spin, during a jump, and especially for flips, gymnasts have to keep their eyes on the end of the beam.

As Christians, I’ve come to realize I want to be no different than the gymnast or the lion.

1. If we are to do anything of significance we must fix our eyes on Jesus with such an intense gaze that everything else seems meaningless.

Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders… fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith.

Hebrews 12:1-2

You know what else is interesting? The female lions do all the hunting! Yup. That’s right! The misses are the brave ones!

When I first heard the narrator say that I thought, “Excuse me? The lionesses do all the hard and brave work of hunting, yet the male lion is the iconic symbol of courage? He gets the credit for being the so-called king of the jungle?”

My curiosity led me to go on a fact hunt. I wanted to know what the male lion did other than eat the food the females hunted for him.

I discovered that the male lion’s primary job is to protect the pride’s territory. Lions live in groups called prides and the area in which they live is called their territory. A territory could be up to 100 square miles! 

The male lion roams the grounds. He roams the territory. It’s his job to keep watch and keep predators out. It’s his job to fight off any attackers, because he’s responsible for keeping his whole pride safe.

See, the female’s job still require bravery and strength, but with the male lion keeping watch, she’s freed up to go in for the hunt.

She’s not going into unknown territory because the male lion’s got things covered. He’s already gone ahead of her and he’s got her back! 

Many things in life require genuine courage. If we are constantly watching our back or worrying unnecessarily about things in our peripheral, we won’t have the focus and strength we need to do what God has called us to.

When Moses was afraid to go before Pharaoh, God encouraged him:

“I will certainly be with you…”

When God says He goes with us, that means He’s watching out for us and He’s got things covered!

We don’t need to worry ourselves with all of life’s issues, we don’t need to carry the weight of everything, only the things God calls us to.

Which brings us to the second vital truth we need in order to be brave.

2. God’s got things covered. Let the peripheral matters lie in His territory. Focus in on what He’s called you to and go for it!

Deuteronomy 31:8 says,

The LORD is the one who goes ahead of you…

What peripheral issues are distracting you from doing the work God has called you to do? Remember, He’s got things covered!

Here’s the last thing I learned about how lions hunt that really got me thinking.

Female lions hunt together. Together they take down other animals twice their size! Together they go out. And together they come back.

God calls us to be brave. Not only does He go with us, but He sends others with us as well!

3. We are called to be brave with our fellow Christians. We are designed to lean on one another. Together, we are made to take down obstacles that are intimidating alone.

For just as each of us has one body with many members… so in Christ we, though many, form one body and each member belongs to all the others.

Romans 12:4-5

God has equipped you to be courageous by giving you Himself and fellow Christians.

Consider Revelation 12:11:

They conquered him [the beast] by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony, for they did not love their lives in the face of death.

Revelation 12:11 HCSB

We were not made to live alone or struggle alone. If you’ve no other place to start, begin by inviting a friend in on this journey with you. Let them in more today than you did yesterday.

What do you say. Are you ready?

I want to do it. I want to live every day knowing that God’s got the grounds I walk on covered.

I want to look at Jesus with such intensity that nothing can distract me. And I want to do it with you! I’m tired of trying alone. I’m tired of journeying by myself when we were clearly made for community.

Let’s do this. Let’s focus in and live the brave and courageous lives we were meant to live together!