Original:July 5, 2007
18 Today I have made you a fortified city, an iron pillar and a bronze wall to stand against the whole land--against the kings of Judah, its officials, its priests and the people of the land. 19 They will fight against you but will not overcome you, for I am with you and will rescue you," declares the LORD. Jeremiah 1:18-19
As a young boy I remember hunting with my dad at the famous Peachtree Ranch near King City, California on a foggy summer morning. The fog was so dense that our vision was hindered beyond 30 yards. Frustrated by the fog bank drenching our vision, dad and I decided to wait it out knowing that we were in prime blacktail country. After an hour or so the fog lifted in the bottom of a canyon to reveal a beautiful buck staring back at us.
I rushed the shot. I punched the trigger. I pulled too soon. I missed.
A man’s dreams can often be like hunting on that foggy August morning in 1978. He has a dream that seems so close that he can almost taste it but its sweetness seems to elude him. I have a dream like that.
I can see my dream.
I can taste it.
I can’t shake it.
My dream is to inspire men to be men by motivating them to learn about manhood, mobilizing them to lead other men, and multiplying their leadership through other men. The picture is clear but the reality and timing are a little foggy. I know our non-profit minsitry called the Great Hunt for God will be a great fight for God, but I know God is preparing the way to battle for the hearts of men. My ambition is to rush in, make it happen, to punch the trigger (so to speak) but Scripture must defeat the influence of culture every time (Romans 12:1-2).
Culture has trained men to set a goal, stalk it, throw up the crosshairs, and pull the trigger. Men live in a get ‘r done, go big or go home, instant gratification world. This spirit of the American man is not the Spirit of God, but some cheap counterfeit rooted in American culture. Men must train themselves to wait for God to build a “fortified city”, from the “pillar of iron” and lay the stones on the “walls of bronze”.
The psalmist wrote, “I waited patiently for the LORD; he turned to me and heard my cry (Psalm 40:1).”
In this passage God is sending Jeremiah to a hardened people. He is sending him with a message to the kings, priests, princes and people of Judah who “will fight against” God’s message through Jeremiah. Note however that Jeremiah did not go until God sent him. He waited for the walls. He was patient for the pillar. He had faith that the fortified city would protect him.
There is a principle working here that encourages men.
The principle is simply this; God will not send a man anywhere that He has not already been. God literally prepares the way (Proverbs 3:5, John 14:6-8) so that we will be over comers even in death, and victorious warriors on the battlefield of souls.
Now reflect with me for a moment. Is there an area in your life where you may have pulled the trigger to soon? Do you have a dream that failed due to your poor timing- a failed business, failed relationship, or failed goal? Start over by committing it to prayer then simply wait. Wait for God’s wonderful timing to bring victory to that area of your life!
Become an over comer.
