Courage

Well, with the crazy weather (-6 with windchill!), we are stuck inside and while the kids go stir crazy, mommy is starting to lean that way too! Scott's home sick and the dog wants to get outside...but we Texans are just not used to this freezing cold and so we huddle inside waiting for our moderate 65+ winter to return. (For those northerners please refrain from snickering...your blood must be thicker to withstand such awful temperatures!) So, while I wait I sit under a cozy blanket about to put my southwest chicken stew in the crockpot and my sweet husband turns 'The Princess Dairies' on TV! Can I be honest? I love this movie! It's sweet and doesn't require a great deal of thought on my part, all the while leaving me with a nice message at the end. I've seen this movie many times and towards the end the main character reads a letter from her father and he imparts some wisdom to her. I did a little research and found the original author, Ambrose Redmoon, and this is what he says,

"Courage is not the absence of fear but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear."

I think this statement has always struck me because I tend to walk in fear more often than not. Worry, anxiety and fear are old friends. We've known one another for more years than I care to remember and sometimes these three can rule my life. Add on to that my ridiculous need to please people and...well, you've got yourself one crazy lady! But in past years I've come to acknowledge and realize that I have no control over anything and day by day I give it all to Jesus. That's not to say I excel at this, no, in fact I struggle every day to maintain sanity and peace in the face of a world that is quickly crumbling.

I tell you all of this to say my courage is always lacking. My courage to stand up for what I believe in, my courage to face adversity. My courage to speak truth to those I love knowing it may cause tension. In all of these things I usually falter. So where does that leave me? It leaves me standing In fear again.

So, I head to my trusted, tried and true Bible! I searched courage in the Bible and do you know what I found? Over 13 references in the Old Testament alone saying, "Be strong and courageous!" Wow! The word of God is telling me to stand up, be strong and courageous! Just like my quote above, courage is not standing up fearless but realizing that there is something more important at stake than my comfort. Things like teaching my girls what truth is. Modeling that in my actions and words to others. Realizing that although tension and hurt are possible if truth is spoken in love, change can happen! Not just speaking but living the truths of God as a witness to His miraculous glory and grace! And while these things make me uncomfortable and full of fear I strive daily to, "Be strong and courageous!" Not because there is anything in me that makes this possible but because my strength and courage come fully from Christ.

Joshua 1:9 says, "This is my command - be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you where ever you go."

This is one of many promises He has given me through His word. While I lean wholly on Him for strength and courage He is always with me. He is there in the moments when I can't seem to get the words out, the moments when I falter to speak words of life and the moments when I think I may fail again. Time and time again He replaces my fear with His courage.

So while I write today in the comfort and warmth of my home I wonder what next step of faith He will ask of me. What new adventure will He call me to? Praying and hoping that while obstacles will present themselves, I do not have to give into fear, knowing that His strength, courage and presence will always overcome.