When I was a little girl my sisters, brothers and I would go to a haunted house at the fair park. One by one we would go in the house. I would be very conscious about showing how fearful I was because I never wanted to be teased about being a "scaredy cat." I would gather up my feelings and hold my breath and go through. As I walked through, my heart would be racing.

The house was dark, cold, with loud howling noises and people screaming from fear could be heard throughout the house. When something would jump out, I would close my eyes tight and freeze, anticipating someone would come from behind and push me away from the frightful, atrocious thing coming at me. As I headed out the house, my sisters and brothers would stand outside cheering, "Run for your life!" Finally I could take a deep breath, smiling with a sense of triumph. I made it through!

As an adult I still have some haunted houses to go through. Each haunted house is like a dreadful pit with scary things coming from left to right. The difference from when I was a child is back then it was all for fun. However, as an adult each haunted house is like an exam. On the other side of this test I get closer and closer to my destiny.

I commit to memory, the story of Benaiah. "He went down and struck down a lion in a pit on a day when snow had fallen," (2 Samuel 23: 20).
I imagine like my haunted house he could not see in his pit. He could hear the frightful lion's roar inside. Benaiah walked up to the pit as I. He jumped in defeating the lion.

Benaiah tackled his greatest fear, knowing he could be chased out of his destiny. It was after he defeated the lion that King David made him chief of his body guards. King Solomon made him commander over the army of Israel. "The king put Benaiah the son of Jehoiada over the army in place of Joab," (1 Kings 2:25).
Like Benaiah, we have to confront our greatest fear. We cannot run away from our race to our destiny carrying our burdens. We must have stamina as Benaiah. We have to be alert, "be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour," (1Peter 5:8).

Your greatest opportunity will present itself as your greatest lion. If you are slack in the day of distress, your strength is limited (Proverbs 24:10). Your greatest desire could be right there, but you are afraid of the lion.
Maybe you feel faint. Perhaps your lion is roaring right in your face. But, what will you do? Will you push through and defeat the lion, or wait, hoping to be magically moved through?

Allow God to strengthen you. Ask God to place his armor on you. Pray that you come out with victory, even if you come out limping. Ask God for favor while you are in your pit. For God's opportunity is a his gift to you.