No Guts, No Glory

Silhouette of a man pointing to the Milky Way.
 

Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory… 

Ephesians 3:20-21


Recently, I’ve been reading a powerfully motivating book by best-selling author Mark Batterson. It’s titled Chase the Lion, with the subtitle, If Your Dream Doesn’t Scare You, It’s Too Small. Consider these excerpts.

“At the end of our lives, our greatest regrets will be the God-ordained opportunities we left on the table, the God-given passions we didn’t pursue, and the God-sized dreams we didn’t go after…”

“When everything is said and done, God isn’t going to say, ‘Well said, good and faithful servant.’ ‘Well thought, good and faithful servant.’ or ‘Well planned, good and faithful servant.’ There is one measuring stick: ‘Well done, good and faithful servant.’” (See Matthew 25:23.)

There is a thread of thought that is all too common in would-be disciples these days. And that is that faithfulness is measured by what you don’t do. You don’t cheat on your taxes.  You don’t take the Lord’s name in vain.  You don’t abuse your children.

Don’t get me wrong. It’s good that you don’t do those things.

The problem with that line of thinking, however, is this: you can do nothing wrong and yet do nothing right.

The result? A life poorly lived, not due to the bad that was done, but because of the good that was not done.

 

God-sized Dreams

Brothers and sisters, we serve a God who has called us to play “offense” with our lives – not simply “defense.”  Those who don’t grasp that will only be playing half of the game and any sort of big victory will be elusive.

The good news is that our “coach” has equipped us to play and indeed win the game of our lives.  The Apostle Paul put it this way: “Now to Him who is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think, according to the power that works in us, to Him be glory…”

What a stunning statement! Read it again…slowly…and let the impact of those words sink in.  “To Him who is able…” “…to Him be the glory.”

There’s an old aphorism that perhaps you’re familiar with: No guts, no glory. It applies to this verse. When we lack the guts to go after God-sized dreams, we rob God of the glory He deserves.


“No guts, no glory.” When we lack the guts to go after God-sized dreams, we rob God of the glory He deserves.


By definition, a God-sized dream is beyond your ability, beyond your capacity. It can come in all sorts of forms.  It may be launching a new ministry that has been on your heart. Or investing in a new initiative that requires a significant risk. Or quitting your secure current job to begin a new career path.

Whatever it might be, it’s God-sized. Unless God does it, it won’t happen! And that is precisely how God gets the glory. God honors big dreams because big dreams honor God.


God honors big dreams because big dreams honor God.


You have one life to live. And only you can live it. Will you live it in the fear of what might happen if you dare to dream a God-sized dream? Or will you live it in the faith of what could happen if you dare to dream a God-sized dream?

 

PRAYER

Lord, I read in Scripture that “In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams” (Acts 2:17). I pray that You would give me some God-sized dreams and dare to act on them.


 
 
 

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