Courage

Have you ever noticed how God often reinforces His message by revealing it to you in several different ways?  I have had a couple different books going at the same time.  I just finished Francine Rivers’ novella, The Priest, which is the story of Aaron and the exodus from his vantage point.  It was a story of failure, of faithfulness, of fear, and of courage. 

I am also reading Max Lucado’s, Out Live Your Life.  Each chapter has it’s own message.  I just finished the chapter called “Persecution:  Prepare for it; Resist it.”  A passage of summation that really penetrated my heart was, “So how can we prepare ourselves?  Simple.  Imitate the disciples.  Linger long and often in the presence of Christ.  Meditate on his grace.  Ponder his love.  Memorize his words.  Gaze into his face.  Talk to him.  Courage comes as we live with Jesus.”  

I thought back to Aaron and how he spent his life, post exodus, studying the words of law that God gave to Moses.  It was his job to know them completely, to obey them, and to teach them to the people.   It took courage to speak God’s truth to the stubborn Israelites.  His courage came from seeking and spending time with God.

At church on Sunday, Pastor Dean Wood shared his message “Courage from God’s Hand & God’s Word,” Ezra 7.  Consider Ezra 7:10, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel.”  The KJV uses the word “seek” in place of “study.”  So in essence, the passage describes how Ezra determined or “set his heart” to seek the Lord, to practice or do what he’d learned, and to teach it to others.  Sound familiar?

As the pastor was teaching, a New Testament verse came to mind.  James 1:22 “But be you doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves.” 

As I have pondered these verses and concepts, I am reminded of the courage that so many demonstrate in the day-to-day living of their lives.  Whether we consider the courage of our soldiers, the courage of teens who make right choices, the courage of missionaries who leave the comforts of their world to make a difference in another, the courage to get up everyday and do the work that God has given you to do, the courage that it takes to love your spouse well, to raise your children to love and fear the Lord, to work honorably and ethically, the courage to keep going in the midst of loss, the courage to speak the truth in love, the courage to share your faith, the courage to do what’s right even when it’s not popular.  I have also been given the privilege of seeing the courage of other cancer patients who fight the good fight, who keep believing, who embrace every moment and live life to its fullest.  I see them encourage others and never give up. 

“Only let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that whether I come and see you or am absent, I may hear of you that you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side by side for the faith of the gospel….”  Philippians 1:27

“Be strong, and let your heart take courage, all you who wait for the Lord!”  Psalm 31:24

“Have I not commanded you?  Be strong and courageous.  Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”  Joshua 1:9

“For God has given us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.”  
2 Timothy 1:7

Courage comes as we live with Jesus.