Courageous Christian Living

Chuckle: After church one Sunday, a young boy said to his mother, “Mom, I’ve decided I want to be a minister when I grow up.” “That’s great,” said the Mom, “But what made you decide to be a minister?” “Well,” the boy replied, “I’ll have to go to church on Sunday anyway, and I figure it will be more fun to stand up and yell than to sit and listen.”

Quote: “It is a brave act of valour to despise death, but where life is more terrifying than death it is then the truest valour to dare to stay alive.” --Sir Thomas Browne

        

“I command you—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9 NLT).

J. Edger Hoover described courage this way: “It is a priceless ingredient of character. The will to do, the tenacity to overcome all obstacles and finish the course, the strength to cling to inexorable ideals are rooted in courage. It is the outward manifestation of our spiritual development.”

We all admire those who display unusual courage and bravery in the face of danger and/or adversity. Courage is a quality of the mind, and, as such, it ranks among the cardinal virtues. Its opposite, cowardice, ranks among the most serious character flaws. Like the wind, courage can only be seen by its manifestations. We can’t see the wind but are well aware of its effects. We know a person has courage not by his looks or words, but by observing his actions. Courage is not only a Christian duty but a constant for the person who, without reservations, places himself in the hands of God. Courage becomes evident in patient endurance, moral purity, spiritual maturity, and fidelity.

The Scriptures are replete with admonitions for us to be courageous, to stand firm, to be strong, and to depend upon God to provide the strength to endure even in the most difficult of circumstances. The kind of courage God desires motivates us to reach the world for Christ and minister to those in need. Courage gives us the mental, emotional, and spiritual toughness that enables us to stand by our convictions and the necessary strength to build and sustain a free and moral society and nation. It allows us to face the perpetrators of the most heinous evil acts with confidence and moral fortitude.

Godly courage will allow us to stand by our convictions, discern right from wrong, and uphold that which is right in the eyes of God. Listen to the apostle Paul: “Therefore, my dear brothers, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord, because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain” (1 Corinthians 15:58 NIV). “Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong. Do everything in love” (1 Corinthians 16:13 NIV). “He that loses wealth loses much: But he that loses courage loses all.” –Cervantes

 

Love, Jerry & Dotse