Opportunity

The word that keeps resonating in my spirit these days is “opportunity.” It’s singing inside of my head, like a bell that refuses to stop swinging back and forth.
 
A year ago I read a fantastic book by Eric Metaxes called 7 Women and The Secret of their Greatness. The book chronicles the stories of Joan of Arc, Susanna Wesley, Hannah More, Maria Skobstsova, Corrie ten Boom, Rosa Parks and Mother Teresa. The book both frightened and inspired me. It frightened me because every one of these women emerged as a hero in their time through fierce courage in the face of raging difficulties. On the other hand, it inspired me because every one of them also chose of their own free will to proactively tackle opportunities during inopportune times in history. These leaders acted when no one was forcing them to respond. They arose when no one would’ve blamed them for remaining silent, hidden, and uninvolved.
 
At the time that I read that book, I was limping emotionally after another collision with loss in my own story. Grief plagued my heart. I could not escape the waves of loneliness and sorrow that I was doused in daily. The stories of these women helped me swallow hard the reality that suffering sets the stage for greatness, if we allow ourselves to be called forward through it.
 
I feel aware of the darkness we are facing together in our world; this virus, this enemy, this nightmare. I see it, clearly. But, I also see something bright emerging through it, a dawn. Reality is holding more than suffering right now, it is also holding glory – for those who choose it. Some people are going to emerge from this time in history with fierce strength and brilliance. Are you one of them? Am I?  Perhaps front-line work is not for everyone. But, what if it is? What if we each have our own front line, and it’s ours to seize - right now?
 
Revival for your marriage? Homeschooling for your kids? Feeding a neighbor? Staying home to protect another? Depth for your prayer life? Being a voice to the masses who are bored on the internet? Please, somebody!  Prompting smiles? Creating art that helps people process grief? Disseminating beauty that can arrest weary souls? Serving sick patients? Holding the hands of the elderly? Feeding the hungry?
 
Opportunities are blooming like a ring of golden doors all around us. The doors are waiting for the daring to enter into them. You and I are presented, now, in this moment of time, with an invitation to jump head first into unexpected opportunities. The invitation is out to one, to all. It’s out to you, to me. Today.

What is your front line? How can you tackle it?
 
Go for it, friends.
Let’s do this.
Seize the opportunities.
 
p.s. Don’t compare your front-line to someone else’s, it will tarnish the brightness of yours.