Courage

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

Sometimes terror is the only thing that wants to register on our emotional radar. All those phone calls that bring bad news, from family members, from friends, from the doctor or the police, terror is sometimes our first response. Sometimes it shows up right after shocked disbelief has gone off to look for a new victim. In all of it our Lord counsels us “be strong and courageous”. Those words repeat several times in the first chapter of Joshua. The Lord begins by promising Joshua that He will never leave or forsake him but He does not promise a bed of roses.

Neither does He promise us an easy road. It is a common mistake among new believers the supposition that once we have given our lives to God He will make it all smooth sailing. He promises to be our strength, our hiding place and our refuge. Why would we need all that if life were without trials?

So what does it mean to be strong and courageous? I think it means to hang on in faith when the circumstances indicate trouble. I think it means to believe that God is good all the time when we are in the middle of heartbreak.

The words be strong and courageous are repeated again in 1 Chronicles. We aren’t to take them lightly. Our strength and courage in hard times bring great glory to God and enormous grace to us.

I was sitting the middle of an incredibly painful time when the Lord brought me to those words in Joshua 1. At first my despair grew larger. How could I be obedient? I couldn’t possibly be strong and courageous. Then I remembered the words of Psalm 91, “He will call upon me and I will answer him; I will be with him in times of trouble.” The strength I was being asked to demonstrate would be provided for me if I would put my faith in Him.

The events that broke my heart that morning, eight years ago, are not fully resolved. There are days when God calls me to continue to be strong and courageous but in it all He has never asked me to do it on my own. When troubles come and they surely will, remember the last five words in Joshua 1. “Only be strong and courageous.”

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