Courageous – 3

Courageous – 3

Subject – The Courage to Take Risks

By Rick Welborne

2 Samuel 23:20-23 (NLT2)
²⁰  There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds, which included killing two champions of Moab. Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it.
²¹  Once, armed only with a club, he killed a great Egyptian warrior who was armed with a spear. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.
²²  Deeds like these made Benaiah as famous as the Three mightiest warriors.
²³  He was more honored than the other members of the Thirty, though he was not one of the Three. And David made him captain of his bodyguard.

Vision, Passion, Discipline, and Risk

1. Vision - Godly vision is the power to see beyond our limitations. 

Helen Keller – What’s worse than being blind? Having eyesight but no vision. 

2. Passion - The intense, compelling emotion evidenced in decisive, courageous action.

Carl Barth – Passion is fear that said its prayers.

3. Discipline - Embracing the restraints of a Godly ambition.

--Vision and passion produces or results in discipline. 

4. Risk - Spending your life making a difference that your dreams (visions) dared you to believe.

--Vision, passion, and discipline will give you the courage to take risk.

Mark Twain – Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than 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.

--As you read through the Word of God, you quickly see that God uses people who are willing to take a risk and will do what He tells them to do like Abraham, Nehemiah, and Benaiah.

--Abraham risked his son by his obedience to God. Nehemiah risked his position in the Babylonian administration to build the walls of Jerusalem. Benaiah risked his life chasing a lion. 

--The law of risk in God’s economy is universal and it is eternal. The more you are willing to risk, the more God can use you. 

--If you are willing to risk everything, there is nothing God cannot do in you and through you. The coward in us says better safe than sorry but God is saying nothing ventured, nothing gained.

1. Commander and Chief of Israel’s Army

--So how did Benaiah accomplish that? His rank is really a by-product of three calculated risks that he had taken decades before. What we do now, sets us up for the future.

--Being courageous now and remaining faithful now are merely catalyst for future blessings and even promotion. The Scriptures are full of examples.

--The first risk was, he took on two Moabite champions even though he was outnumbered. Or was he? If God be for us who can be against us.

--The second risk he took was to chase a lion down into a pit on a snowy day, and then, to be courageous enough to jump in the pit and kill the lion. Yikes!

--Third, he took on an Egyptian giant who was armed with a spear and all he has was a club in his hand. He took the spear away from the giant and killed him with it. 

--What if Benaiah would have said, there are too many Moabites for this to be a fair fight and would have retreated instead? It’s too dangerous chasing a 500-pound beast into a pit. 

--What if he would have said a seven-and-a-half-foot tall giant was too big? I believe it is safe to say that Benaiah would have never become David’s body guard or commander and chief.

--It was his willingness to risk life and limb that set him apart from all the rest. The scriptures say that he was more honored than the thirty. David’s elite fighting men.

2 Samuel 23:23 (NLT2) ²³ He was more honored than the other members of the Thirty, though he was not one of the Three. And David made him captain of his bodyguard.

Mark Batterson – Lion Chasers are risk takers. They have learned that playing it safe is risky. They recognize that the best you can do if you run away from a lion is break even. You might save your skin, but you won’t have a lion skin hanging on your wall either. No risks equal no reward.

--As I look back over the years at my ministry here at Life Church, I realize that most of the wonderful things that have happened have been a by-product of taking calculated risks. 

--Twenty plus years ago as we considered building our sanctuary and surrounding classrooms, I was well aware of the risks involved. I knew pastors who left their churches because of that.

--They could not raise the money and then got bogged down in debt, and felt the only way of escape was to escape. I was concerned about how it would affect our missions.

--Our willingness to take risks gave God a great opportunity to show his grace. We raised 2.2 million dollars in 3 years and our missions giving went up instead of down. 9 acres became 26 acres. Debt free.

--Two Sundays in a roll we had visitors put in one-hundred thousand dollars. We had people in the community stopping by giving us large checks. The bank dropped our loan from 7 to 4 percent. 

--So what’s my point, we took a risk and God showed up again and again. The need was met and God received the glory. Pastors would call me and ask me about fund raising. I would just laugh.

2. Experiences that Change the Direction of Your Life.

July 20, 1969 Neil Armstrong said this when he first stepped onto the moon, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.” 

--To modify his quote a little for our purposes. One courageous small step can lead to one giant leap toward destiny. God, please give us courageous pioneers of the faith!

--There are experiences in our lives that forever change the trajectory of our lives; these are the moments that couldn’t be planned or predicted. These divide our lives into chapters. Lions and giants.

--Since we are talking about courage, let me exhort you to pray one of the most dangerous (scariest for some) prayers you can make:

Jesus, what do you want me to do with my life?

--By the way, the only thing more dangerous than praying this prayer or asking this question is not asking the question at all. Not my will but Your will be done.

--Most of the time, you will not get that answer right away. Why? God wants you to want that answer seriously enough that you begin to seek Him with a greater intensity.

Psalm 27:7-9 (NIV)
⁷  Hear my voice when I call, O LORD; be merciful to me and answer me.
⁸  My heart says of you, "Seek his face!" Your face, LORD, I will seek.
⁹  Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, O God my Savior. 

--As you seek God’s face over a period of time with intensity, you will eventually look back in retrospect and be thankful it took time to hear His voice. Why? Easy answers produce shallow convictions. 

--If I acknowledge Him in all my ways and if I stop leaning on my own understanding, He will direct my path. That’s His promise from Proverbs 3. If it’s in the Bible…

3. Good is Often the Enemy of the Great.

--When I still lived in Texas and had a good opportunity to play Tournament Tennis for a living, many people thought I had lost my mind by moving to Lousisana to be a youth pastor.

--In 1983 I was working at a trucking company making about $32,000. A man who had been coming to my tennis matches (I didn’t know that) offered me a really good opportunity.

--He said, I will pay you $35,000 a year just to practice and play tennis. I will pay for your coaching, your travel, your equipment, and everything you need to succeed. I just want 10%.

--Wow! What a good opportunity. Kind of exciting to say the least. I asked the man to give me a week to pray and he agreed. I prayed one of those dangerous courageous prayers.

--Lord, you know what I have been offered. I know you have called me to preach but if you want to use tennis for your glory, I am willing. But if you open any door during this week, even if it doesn’t pay…

--I had to let the man know on Friday. That Thursday I got a call from a pastor in south Louisiana. I need a youth pastor but I can’t pay you anything. You have to work. I said yes. My first year…$3800.

--Though my three years there were very difficult, I wouldn’t trade that experience for anything. Youth group grew from 6 to 120. Last year, number one in STL. Over $10,000. It was a great choice.

Hebrews 5:8 (NLT2) ⁸ Even though Jesus was God’s Son, he learned obedience from the things he suffered.

--Sometimes taking a calculated risk means giving up something that is good so you can experience something that is great. In a sense, sin is shortchanging ourselves and shortchanging God.

--It is settling for anything less than God’s best. Faith is the exact opposite. Faith is renouncing lesser goods for something greater. To get to your destiny, it may just be one small act of courage. 

--One courageous choice may be the only thing between you and your dream becoming reality. One small act of courage has changed the course of history. Ask Esther. She saved the Jews from genocide.

Esther 4:16 (NKJV)
¹⁶  "Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!"

--One act of courage, one decision to choose the best and thousands were saved. What about you and me? 

Dream Again - 6

Dream Again - 6

Subject: Win the Day

By Rick Welborne

Proverbs 13:12 (NLT) ¹² Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but a dream fulfilled is a tree of life. 

Psalm 105:17-21 (NLT) ¹⁷ Then he sent someone to Egypt ahead of them— Joseph, who was sold as a slave.
¹⁸  They bruised his feet with fetters and placed his neck in an iron collar.
¹⁹  Until the time came to fulfill his dreams, the LORD tested Joseph’s character.
²⁰  Then Pharaoh sent for him and set him free; the ruler of the nation opened his prison door.
²¹  Joseph was put in charge of all the king’s household; he became ruler over all the king’s possessions. 

--The last several weeks we have been talking a whole lot about these three things in Joseph’s life:

1. It is not so much about us as it is about “them”. 2. It is about the timing of God. 3. It is about the test.

--Tonight I want us to look at Joseph and see how is it even possible to get from the pit to the palace in Egypt. How could this ambitious young man arrive at his dreams? Just lucky I guess. Not so!

--Some of you are old enough to remember when Jackie Robinson made his debut as the first black player to play major league baseball in the modern era. In the third inning he hit a three run homer.

--An Associated Press photographer captured the moment when Robinson crossed home plate and George Shuba (the batter up) extending his hand to him to congratulate him. A giant leap for racial equality.

--In a book The Boys of Summer Roger Kahn made a statement about Shuba’s swing that it was as natural as a smile. Shuba laughed at the notion that his swing was natural. 

Shuba – You call that natural? I swung a 44ounce bat 600 times a night, 4,200 times a week, 47,200 swings every winter. By the way, I did that for 15 years.

Mark Batterson – You cannot pray as if it depends solely on God; you also have to work as if it depends on you. It’s your work ethic plus your prayer ethic that will inch you toward your dreams. And it happens one practice, one day at a time. 

1. To fulfill your dreams depends on what you do in the pit.

--I hope all of us realize that we have choices every day that we have to make that will either keep us on our journey toward our dreams or send us into a pit of despair. Decisions we make in the pit are vital.

--I often say…between the promise and the prize there is a process. Today let me say it this way…between the declared dreams and the fulfilled dreams, there are lots of decisions to be made.

--What I do in the pit today will determine how the rest of my story will be written…there will always be plenty of opportunities for you to quit…to give up. Lots of pits.

--Joseph’s brothers wanted to kill him and throw him in a pit…they were ticked about his dreams… Reuben intervened and the pit became the means of saving his life. How do you view your pit?

--What appears to you as the obstacle of your destruction may actually be God’s stepping stone to get you there. The Dream Giver has the power to work everything for your good. Rom. 8:28

Lamentations 3:20-26 (NLT) ²⁰  I will never forget this awful time, as I grieve over my loss.
²¹  Yet I still dare to hope when I remember this:
²²  The faithful love of the LORD never ends! His mercies never cease.
²³  Great is his faithfulness; his mercies begin afresh each morning.
²⁴  I say to myself, “The LORD is my inheritance; therefore, I will hope in him!”
²⁵  The LORD is good to those who depend on him, to those who search for him.
²⁶  So it is good to wait quietly for salvation from the LORD. 

--What is my attitude when I am in the pit…what is the inclination of my heart? Do I whine or do I trust the God Who gave me my dreams in the first place? Do I trust Him with all my heart?

--You see, before you get to the palace God is testing your character to see if you are the man or woman He wants there to accomplish His will for that situation.

--Joseph exemplified certain disciplines for all of us to consider. He had to be intentional about not taking his eyes off of the dreams/promises of God. God’s promises are yes and they are amen!

--Think about how you react when you are detoured from your objectives. Fix your eyes on Jesus, author and finisher, think about that. Beginning and the End!

--In the pit Joseph had to remember God is Omni-present…He is everywhere. God is Omniscient…He is all knowing. He is Omnipotent…He is all powerful.

--He is everywhere…even in the pit. He is all knowing…He knows his brothers are wanting to kill him but God knows Joseph will be used to save them. He is all powerful…He can protect him until the time is right.

--Let me ask you today…what do you know? More important…Who do you know? When you are in the pit and life isn’t fair…Who do you know? Paul:

Philippians 3:8 (NIV)
⁸  What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ …

--Life ain’t always pretty…life can be hard and challenging but what you do when you are in the pit will be your declaration to the world how much you trust your God. Trust God in the pit! Trust God in the pit! 

2. To fulfill your dreams will depend on what you do before you get in the pit. 

--Say what? What are you doing to prepare yourself for the day you are thrown in a pit or thrown in jail. What are you doing to get ready for the day you are falsely accused or forgotten. 

--Let me say it this way…games are not won the day we play them…they are won with all the days of practice. 

--When I was going to college in Texas, I was introduced to tennis by a bunch of my college buddies. I played two years of basketball there and loved it but I found myself loving tennis.

--One of these friends took me to a tristate tennis tournament at the Samuel Grand Tennis Center in Dallas Texas. Keep in mind I had been playing tennis about 2 months. I was the worst in our group.

--As we sat there watching the match, I got inspired and I got a dream in my heart and I blurted it out of mouth. I said (out loud) I will come back to this tournament next year and win the whole thing.

--My friend laughed so hard and so loud that the tournament director came over and told him to be quiet or leave. He said, “Rick, these guys have played tennis all their lives…there is no way you can win!”

--I had one year to learn how to play a game that I had just started playing and to come back and fulfill a dream in my heart. My friend kept mocking but I kept dreaming. Within a month I could beat all my friends.

--I watched tennis on TV as I held my racquet in my hand imitating how they were swinging, I went to the library (remember those) and got books on tennis. I ordered tennis magazine and read it cover to cover.

--At that time I was 200 lbs. so I started jumping rope every day and eating better until I got down to 170 lbs. I would hit on the wall for hours and finally got where I could hit 2000 times without missing. I biked a lot.

--I would practice every day serving for two hours…I would practice in the wind and in the sun…Picture in the paper shoveling snow off the court so I could play. 

--I found a small tennis tournament close by entered…I won. I met an older man in a tennis tournament who wanted to play every week…he was like a human backboard, he never missed. I told him my dream.

--He was the first person who did not laugh at me when I mentioned my dream…He said to me…You can win if you do what I tell you…I could not wait for his wisdom…tell me…tell me!

--He said…quit trying to hit a winner every time you hit the ball and use your ability and athleticism to win…in other words hit the ball back at least seven times…let your opponent lose the point.

--As soon as I applied his wisdom, I beat him for the first time and he never won against me again. I kept practicing every day. I would set up three matches in one day…I put in the time. The day finally came.

--I was so excited and so nervous, that in the first round I was so nervous I could not hit the ball back and forth with my opponent. He said, Good grief, let’s just start. 

--After winning 6 matches I found myself in the finals…He won the first set…I was nervous and wanted to abandon the game plan but I didn’t. Keep the ball in play 7 times, 8 times, and more. Be consistent!

--I squeaked out the second set using that strategy and I perceived the plan was wearing down my opponent…I won the third set 6-2 and was elated and thankful. I won it three years in a row.

--The first time I won I went was to my buddy who laughed at me when I told him my dream to show him the trophy. Of course, he was in shock! Pastor Rick, what is the point to this long story.

--The point is this…before you find yourself in a pit, in a prison, falsely accused, forgotten, or discouraged by family there are certain disciplines you need to have in your life.

--On the job training is okay, sometimes, but that can be overwhelming if we have not done our homework ahead of time. Peter says it this way:

2 Peter 1:3-8 (NIV)
³  His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.
⁴  Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature and escape the corruption in the world caused by evil desires.
⁵  For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge;
⁶  and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness;
⁷  and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.
⁸  For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

--In other words, David didn’t win the battle with Goliath the day he hit him in the head with the stone and cut his head off…He won the battle as he daily disciplined himself to worship and to protect the sheep.

--David was being prepared to handle the giant as he was taking care of a bear and a lion. We win our battles (our pits) by the daily disciplines we have put into practice…we keep adding to our faith.

3. To fulfill your dreams will depend on you winning the day…win the day!

--This could be one of the greatest years of your life! Sure, Pastor, that sounds great but that seems impossible from where I am sitting right now…it seems like just a dream to get there…can’t do it.

--Let me ask you this…can you discipline yourself to have a good hour…of course. Can you put enough hours together to have a great day…I think so! How about a week…maybe! What about a month?

--Here’s the key…win the day…win today. You see, you get in shape one workout at a time, you get out of debt one payment at a time, you graduate one class at a time, you get the promotion one project at a time.

--You win the game or the match one practice at a time…just win the day! Win today! Do what it takes today! Pray today! Learn today! Persevere today! Have self-control today! Win the day! Psalm of Ascent:

 Psalm 40:1-5 (NKJV)
¹  I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry.
²  He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.
³  He has put a new song in my mouth-- Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD.
⁴  Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.
⁵  Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered. 

Courageous – 2

Courageous – 2

Subject – Life is Uncertain/God is Complex

By Rick Welborne

2 Samuel 23:20-23 (NLT2)
²⁰  There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds, which included killing two champions of Moab. Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it.
²¹  Once, armed only with a club, he killed a great Egyptian warrior who was armed with a spear. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.
²²  Deeds like these made Benaiah as famous as the Three mightiest warriors.
²³  He was more honored than the other members of the Thirty, though he was not one of the Three. And David made him captain of his bodyguard.

--One thing that Benaiah found out in all of these situations is that life is uncertain and that God is complex. Make sure you get this: Life will always have a measure of uncertainty.

--I heard one family’s uncertainty principle was this: “You can’t never always sometimes tell.” With my kids it was this: “We are all going to die if we live long enough.” Dad, you are crazy.

--Think about Benaiah, I am totally convinced that he had no idea that the above events would be on his calendar the day they happened. He had to trust God each day.

1. Stop trying to Figure God Out.

--Just when we think we have God figured out, we discover a new dimension about Him that blows our mind. Theologians call this the “Incomprehensibility of God.”

--I have coined a phrase with my daughter, especially in the area of dating, that I believe has added wisdom to her life and it is this. This has to do with the guys she dates:

“You don’t know what you don’t know.”

--The more I think about these words I find that they are applicable in so many areas. In our finite minds, we simply do not know what we do not know. We are blind in so many areas. 

--This uncertainty principle definitely applies to God. We will be learning for eternity things about Him that we simply don’t know.

Psalm 145:1-3 (NKJV)
¹  I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever.
²  Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever.
³  Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable. 

Isaiah 40:28 (NKJV)
²⁸  Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, The Creator of the ends of the earth, Neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable. 

--So if life is infinitely uncertain and God is infinitely complex, then all we can do is accept our lives the way they are and embrace uncertainty. Stop thinking that your faith reduces uncertainty.

--Nothing could be further from the truth. Faith doesn’t reduce uncertainty. Faith embraces uncertainty. Simply put, we will never have all the answers. 

--Some people never come to terms with this truth. They feel like something must be wrong with them because they cannot figure God out. 

--Maybe, just maybe, faith has less to do with gaining so much knowledge about our lives and our future, and more to do with embracing the surprises or wonders God sets us up for.

2. Our Lives are Complicated. 

--Think about this: Maybe a relationship with God doesn’t simplify your lives the way you think it should. Maybe it complicates your lives in ways they should be complicated. 

--I don’t know about you but I believe it would be extremely complicated to fight two Moabite warriors, and Egyptian giant with a spear, and a lion in a snowy pit.

--Stay with me, how many of you know being in love complicates your lives. I am sure you have heard the phrase, “There is a fine line between love and hate!” Love complicates our lives.

--Children complicate our lives. They are definitely high maintenance, they are extremely expensive, they can be very aggravating, they can break your hearts but they can bring you great joy.

--Pastoring a church with three campuses and supporting 220 missionaries is extremely complicated. But without those complications how would I ever fulfill my calling and destiny.

--Wealth can complicate our lives. Having to manage your employees, taxes, and investments. Constantly watching your schedule and the bottom line is stressful. Thank God for complications.

--When you study the parable of the talents (money), the reward for good work was more work. Complications are or can be the by-product of blessings. More work and responsibility.

Matthew 25:20-21 (NKJV)
²⁰  So he who had received five talents came and brought five other talents, saying, 'Lord, you delivered to me five talents; look, I have gained five more talents besides them.'
²¹  His lord said to him, 'Well done, good and faithful servant; you were faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord.'

--A relationship with God will complicate your life but it will complicate your life in ways it needs to be complicated. How so?

--Being a disciple carries with it a lot of responsibility and complications. That is why, I believe, in the Great Commission, He says to “Make disciples.”

Matthew 28:19 (NKJV)
¹⁹  Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

--As a disciple you have to study to show yourself approved, you have to be a good steward, you have to be faithful, you have to share your faith. Complicated but complications are good.

--Sin will complicate your lives in ways they should not be complicated. One way or the other our lives will be complicated. Good complications or bad complications…it’s your choice.

Psalm 37:1-5 (NLT2)
¹ Don’t worry about the wicked or envy those who do wrong.
²  For like grass, they soon fade away. Like spring flowers, they soon wither.
³  Trust in the LORD and do good. Then you will live safely in the land and prosper.
⁴  Take delight in the LORD, and he will give you your heart’s desires.
⁵  Commit everything you do to the LORD. Trust him, and he will help you. 

3. Sensitivity to Holy Spirit.

--The longer I live, the more I think that spiritual maturity is less about figuring everything out and having all the answers. I believe it is more about a moment by moment sensitivity to Holy Spirit. 

--Obviously, I am not against planning our lives. Many leadership gurus will tell you, you have to have a 5, 10, 15, and 20-year plan laid out and that sounds good on paper.

--Did I mention earlier that we can’t figure God out and our lives are extremely complicated? If we can figure out and plan our own futures, where does that put the lordship of Jesus?

Proverbs 19:20-21 (NLT2)
²⁰  Get all the advice and instruction you can, so you will be wise the rest of your life.
²¹  You can make many plans, but the LORD’s purpose will prevail. 

--If you want to make God laugh, give Him a detailed description of where you will be and what you will be doing twenty years from now. 

--Though you may have plans for the future, the reality is, you have no idea what life will look like ten years from now. But that’s okay because God does. 

--I just don’t believe that spiritual maturity equates in higher degrees of predictability in our lives. Being spiritually mature should mean that we become more sensitive to Holy Spirit.

--In Revelations 2&3 Jesus says something seven times to the churches that we should hear:

Revelation 2:7 (NCV) ⁷ “Every person who has ears should listen to what the Spirit says to the churches. 

--I am totally convinced that Benaiah did not have a detailed plan laid out about killing a giant, killing Egyptian warriors, and a lion in a snowy pit. This led him to be commander of Israel’s army.  

--Some of our most memorable events were unplanned. Vacation to Williamsburg. Fairfield Glades. Looking at stained glass. A police officer. Fairfield…Fairfield Glades. Sorry, officer, she has a drinking problem.

--Sadly, we want control of our lives. Being a follower of Jesus means you are relinquishing control. Just like kids on a trip…are we there yet?

--We never outgrow the desire to want to know exactly where we are headed and when we will get there. We are control freaks. But faith involves giving up control. 

--With loss of control comes a lot of uncertainty (possibly a five-hundred-pound lion) and complications. But again, that’s ok because if we are sensitive to Holy Spirit may lead to our destiny.

2 Samuel 23:20-23 (NLT2)
²⁰  There was also Benaiah son of Jehoiada, a valiant warrior from Kabzeel. He did many heroic deeds, which included killing two champions of Moab. Another time, on a snowy day, he chased a lion down into a pit and killed it.
²¹  Once, armed only with a club, he killed a great Egyptian warrior who was armed with a spear. Benaiah wrenched the spear from the Egyptian’s hand and killed him with it.
²²  Deeds like these made Benaiah as famous as the Three mightiest warriors.
²³  He was more honored than the other members of the Thirty, though he was not one of the Three. And David made him captain of his bodyguard.

--Look what uncertainty and complications led to in Benaiah’s life. Captain of David’s body guard and eventually, captain over Israel’s army. 

--If we are sensitive to Holy Spirit through all of our challenges, who knows where God will lead us?