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Reframing Our 500lb Lions

Every single person you lock eyes with is going through some great battle—EVERY SINGLE ONE. Benaiah (2 Samuel 23:20-23) gave us a new label: 500lb lion. An addiction that won’t loosen its grip, a marriage that’s spiraling, the loss of a loved one, the longing to conceive a child that’s met with another month of pain, financial hardship, job loss, failing health…if you’re not staring at a 500 lb. lion, just keep living.

Hezekiah was a king in the southern kingdom of Judah at a time when the Assyrian empire had set its sights on this small remnant of Israelites (Isaiah 36-37). Sennacherib, the king of Assyria, issued repeated threats to Hezekiah that were laced with intimidation. And, generally speaking, when Sennacherib wanted to get something done, it got done. His roar was loud and his track-record induced paralyzing fear.

Hezekiah is doing what God has called him to do. It was God who appointed him to this role. He’s in the center of God’s will, doing God’s work, for God’s glory…and he’s dealing with one 500lb lion after another.

Living everyday life with Jesus doesn’t exempt us from 500lb lions, it reframes them. 

That’s what happened with Hezekiah. The roar from Assyria pushed him to the temple of God, to reach out to a friend of God (Isaiah), and to fall on his face before God. The cumulative effect of these steps didn’t change the circumstances surrounding Hezekiah  but it reframed them in light of the majesty of the King of kings and Lord of lords. 

Why won’t the Lord just deal with my 500lb lion right now, today?

He might. (Isaiah 37:36-37)

But, more likely, it’s going to be a longer and slower process. God is at work, but His focus is upon who we’re becoming in the battle. It’s about pressing our roots of faith deeper. It’s about surrender and trust. It’s about developing courage in the face of fear. It’s about seeing the Lion of the Tribe of Judah grow bigger in our eyes.

God loves to step into that space of the “great unfixables” of our lives. He loves to stack the deck with impossible odds. That’s why the lions seem so big and overwhelming. Let’s learn from Hezekiah—prioritize worship, reach out to a sacred companion, and pray your way through whatever it is you’re going through. Your current reality may not be changed but it can be reframed.

“It is not easy to find your way to God in a sudden crisis unless you have been in the habit of going to God about everything.” – Oswald Chambers