In my book 13-Foot Coffins, I talked about how God has a coffin for every giant you will ever face, regardless of its size. In my lifetime, I’ve met many giants that I didn’t have the courage or power to face. And in this same lifetime, I’ve also never met a giant that God couldn’t handle or that His grace wasn’t sufficient enough to overcome.

Life is no place for the timid.

When God told Joshua to make a bold move in stepping into his destiny as a leader, He didn’t give Joshua a book of methods, strategies, or outlines on leadership. He didn’t teach him ultimate fighting techniques for taking giants down. He simply told him to be strong and courageous (Joshua 1:1-9).

If Joshua could do that, God promised to take care of everything else.

Our family recently saw We Bought A Zoo (watch the trailer below), the amazing true story about a recently widowed father, Benjamin Mee, played by Matt Damon, who decides his family needs a fresh start. He still feels the pain of losing his wife to cancer. He is struggling with an insubordinate teenage son facing expulsion from school, and is desperate to rescue his family by instilling a sense of courage and adventure in his children. They are all dealing with a great loss and a huge transition in their lives, so the single father feels a sense of urgent responsibility to teach his children how to face life with audacity.

He takes a bold risk.

Benjamin quits his job as a journalist and moves his family to the most unlikely of places, buying an old dilapidated zoo, though having no experience with animals and destitute of any knowledge in zoology.

Facing enormous odds, he and his children, along with a small staff, work diligently to get the zoo re-opened and restored to its former glory. They face unspeakable challenges: an overcritical inspector, a divisive staff person, a depleted bank account, a diminishing morale, and a disengaged teenager. Yes, it’s a movie about church planting!!!

But Benjamin is a bold and courageous leader. He commits to the process despite the overwhelming odds. In an intimate conversation he has with his teenage son, Benjamin explains to Dylan how sometimes it just takes a little bit of ridiculous faith and crazy courage to accomplish your goals.

“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.”

It’s a defining moment for Dylan. He gets it. And it becomes a turning point in his life.

The Bible is full of moments just like this; stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things because they were overcome with about “20 seconds of insane courage.”

It takes 20 seconds of courage to:

• Go after that God-inspired dream when others don’t believe in it.
• Admit to your spouse that you were wrong.
• Forgive that person who offended you.
• Decide your past will not define you.
• Honor God with generosity… GIVE!
• Have that tough conversation with someone far from God.
• Lay down your agenda for Jesus’ agenda.

Today, whatever you are facing in life, avoid the temptation to know everything and simply seize your moment. Be strong and courageous, act on those 20 seconds of insane courage, and trust God to do the unimaginable in your life.

Life is no place for the timid. Go for it!

http://youtu.be/ZmMFIganRQY

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