‘all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage’
(Benjamin Mee – We bought a Zoo – 2011 – 20th Century Fox).
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Do you wake some mornings, lie there in bed and think “Here we go again”?
In the sci-fi action movie, Edge of Tomorrow (Warner Bros. Pictures – 2014), Tom Cruise has to save mankind from an alien race that is invading, but he keeps on getting killed. Once he is killed, he wakes up at the start, and has to work out how not to get killed and finally save mankind.
The film is reminiscent of the comedy, Groundhog Day (Columbia Pictures – 1993), but darker in its premise, as in Groundhog Day the star Bill Murray only has to save himself and change his outlook on life.
Sometimes it can feel as though we are going over the same things day in, and day out, that we are stuck in a rut and cannot get out of it.
When we feel that we are stuck in a rut, we need to look at what is happening, for God did not say “Follow me and do the same thing every day without change, until you die”, he said;
‘Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me’ (Luke 9:23 NIV).
So every day we must choose to follow Jesus. It is not a one-time choice of deciding to follow Jesus on a Monday and for the rest of the week do as I please, no, every day we have to choose to follow Jesus. We choose to trust him, we choose to talk to him, and we choose to study his words.
Life is a choice!
In all of what we do, we are not alone; Jesus is with us always as when he gave the disciples the ’Great Commission’ to go and make disciples of people everywhere they went, he finished by saying;
‘And I will be with you always, to the end of the age’ (Matthew 28:20 GNB).
So we make the choice to follow Jesus, and we may have made it many years ago, or recently, we may have made it with many others at a large gathering of believers, or at a festival of praise and worship, but now we are back home in our ever-day job and life, it seems just a little bit harder, and we feel less inclined to do some of the things that we should because we sometimes feel that we are all there is.
Many people will have times like these when we feel alone, I have them frequently, but we have to stand on the promises of The Bible, claim them and hold fast to them;
‘I will never leave you alone, never! And I will not loosen my grip on your life’ (Hebrews 13:5 The Passion Translation).
If we claim this promise that is written in The Bible, if we stand on this promise and believe with all our heart that everything written within its pages is true, and remember;
‘Every Scripture has been inspired by the Holy Spirit, the breath of God’ (2 Timothy 3:17 TPT).
Then we should also remember that elsewhere in The Bible it also says this;
‘my word that goes out from my mouth: it will not return to me empty’ (Isaiah 55:11 NIV).
We need to remember that if God says something in the pages of The Bible, then it is true, and even though the day may seem the same as the previous one, God will give us challenges.
When we walk down the street, there may be someone who needs help, or there may be someone that we look at who seems to be struggling. It may be at work when someone says that they are getting a divorce, or they are struggling financially.
Whatever happens, it may be for just that reason that you are there, with your faith in God and the words of The Bible.
The Jewish people were about to undergo genocide, when Queen Esther had a chance to potentially save them, but she could have chosen to keep quiet, but her uncle gave her sage advice;
‘Yet who knows – maybe it was for such a time like this that you were made [queen]!’ (Esther 4:14 GNB).
So, you finally made the decision to follow God, and now you have someone struggling right in front of you. This is not your normal average day, God has put someone in your life that needs Jesus like you and I do, but maybe they do not know it yet.
My wife likes the film ‘We Bought a Zoo’(20th Century Fox – 2011). In it the father tells the son;
‘You know, sometimes all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it’ (Benjamin Mee – We bought a Zoo).
Now, I am not saying that every time you are insanely brave to talk about Jesus or the words of scripture, that something good will come of it, I have had times where people just scoff, but you have done your job, as the sower of the ‘word of God’ you have planted a seed.
Who knows what will happen to the seed planted, who will water it, will it be on rocky soil or will it find good soil, as the sower of the seed (Matthew 13:1-23), your job is to plant and let others tend, unless later in time, you also get the chance to tend your seed.
But every day, if you trust and let him, God will give you something to do for the kingdom. Days come and days go, but we should look for the good that we can do.
We are the light of Jesus and we need to take him everywhere that we go in this world. That way, no day should be like ‘Groundhog Day’.
Treat each day like the gift it is;
‘Today is a gift, that is why it is called the present’ (Bil Keane).
Take your gift each and every different day and use it for the kingdom of God.
Be insanely brave each day for twenty seconds, and spend that time pushing the boundaries of God’s kingdom, that each day it gets bigger and bigger.
Twenty seconds!
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This is the moment
This is why I’m living
To face the giants with You
It’s now or never
And though my heart is racing
I’ll leave my armour with You
Your love makes us stronger
And Your love sees us through
Only the brave will go where You go
Into the fire but never alone
We know You’ll always carry us home
Only the brave will go where You go
It’s all or nothing
These scars will tell a story
Of how our power broke through
In every battle
Our God is never shaken
Our hope will always be You
Your love makes us stronger
And Your love sees us through
Your love is forever
I’m Yours, I’m with You
We’re gonna go where You go
Only The Brave (Pocketful of Faith #2)
Nick Herbert, Martin Smith, Tim Hughes
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Father God, thank you for saving us when we turn to you. Lord we thank you for your amazing grace in our lives. Help us to be brave to show your love and kindness, your grace and mercy to all the people in our lives. Lord help us to have these amazing, insanely brave times where we can share you with people around us.
Amen
Bobbles Stuff 