In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day: How to Survive and Thrive When Opportunity Roars

by Mark Batterson

Chase the lion.

Lion chasers who are more afraid of missing God-ordained opportunities than making a few mistakes along the way.

You are responsible forever for what you have tamed. ANTOINE DE SAINT-EXUPÉRY

You are responsible forever for what you have tamed.

Normal people run away from lions. They run as far and as fast as they possibly can. But lion chasers are wired differently.

God is in the business of strategically positioning us in the right place at the right time. A sense of destiny is our birthright as followers of Christ. God is awfully good at getting us where He wants us to go. But here’s the catch: The right place often seems like the wrong place, and the right time often seems like the wrong time.

There is an old aphorism: “No guts, no glory.” When we don’t have the guts to step out in faith and chase lions, then God is robbed of the glory that rightfully belongs to Him.

When we don’t have the guts to step out in faith and chase lions, then God is robbed of the glory that rightfully belongs to Him.

One of the most exhilarating things in the world is doing something that no one thinks you can do.

Let me try to put it in scientific terms. The shortest possible time is 10-43 seconds. It is called Planck time. Any shorter and quantum mechanics can’t tell whether events are simultaneous. The shortest possible distance is 1.6 × 10-35 meters. It’s called Planck length. Any shorter and quantum mechanics can’t distinguish between here and there. And that’s where God comes in. He’s in the space and the time that, according to quantum mechanics, doesn’t exist.

“Don’t accumulate possessions; accumulate experiences!”

Don’t let mental lions keep you from experiencing everything God has to offer. The greatest breakthroughs in your life will happen when you push through the fear. The defining moments will double as the scariest decisions.

If you take a second to reflect on your life, you’ll discover that the greatest experiences are often the scariest, and the scariest experiences are often the greatest.

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. MARK TWAIN