Lions, Snow, and the Pits

I’m back for a short visit in the blogosphere. After, December 10, I hope to be back far more regularly.

Today, in Sunday School, in 2 Samuel 23, we read about Benaiah who “went down into a pit on a snowy day and killed a lion.” I find that to be such an interesting thing to be remembered for. Yet, if I ever did kill a lion in a pit on a snowy day, I guess I would want a big hoopla made out of it, too.

However, in reality, I don’t want to ever need to do any such thing—no lions, no snow, no pits.

I am reminded of the scripture about our enemy that prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. So, I guess we must admit that we do face lions of one kind or another. Each of us has a weak area that can be used as a “worst possible adversary” against us to cause us to abandon our heavenly journey. I’m pretty sure that it’s a different lion for each of us.

You know, a pit would be the worst possible place to fight a lion. There’s no place to run or hide. Like Daniel who didn’t have anywhere to go to get away from those lions he faced, if Benaiah met a lion in a pit, a fight was inevitable. (I always heard that in a burning room if there was a door, you would get out; if there was no door, you would put out the fire.) In a pit, no door! Oh yes, sometimes life feels like the pits.

And, if all that is not bad enough, a freezing cold day with deep snow would be the worst possible conditions for a fight. Years ago, when my boys played baseball in the early spring when it was still very cold, I bought fisherman’s hand warmers to keep in their pockets, especially when they were pitching. Cold hands and cold fingers do not do operate exactly as they are needed.

Well, we do know that when Benaiah faced the worst possible enemy under the worst possible conditions in the worst possible place, he still came out victorious. So, God must have had a reason for telling that story. It could only have a happy ending if God intervened and sent help to Benaiah in the pit, you know, like the 4th man in the fiery furnace with Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego.

Moral of the story: remember Benaiah’s victory when we feel we are facing our lion in a pit on a snowy day and keep one eye out for the angel that's sure to show up to help us.

♫ “So many times I've questioned certain circumstances
Things I could not understand
Many times in trials, weakness blurs my vision
Then my frustration gets so out of hand
It's then I am reminded I've never been forsaken
I've never had to stand the test alone
As I look at all the victories the spirit rises up in me
And it's through the fire my weakness is made strong

He never promised that the cross would not get heavy
And the hill would not be hard to climb
He never offered our victories without fighting
But he said help would always come in time
Just remember when you’re standing in the valley of decision
And the adversary says “give in”
Just hold on, our Lord will show up
And he will take you through the fire again

I know within myself that I would surely perish
But if I trust the hand of God, He'll shield the flames again ♫

“Through the Fire” by the Crabb Family