And David said to his son Solomon, “Be strong and of good courage, and do it; do not fear nor be dismayed, for the Lord God—my God—will be with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you, until you have finished all the work for the service of the house of the Lord. 1Chronicles 28:20
Courage (H553): To be strong, alert, courageous, brave, stout, bold, solid, hard
b) to strengthen, secure (for oneself), harden (heart), make firm, assure c) to be determined, to make oneself alert, strengthen oneself, confirm oneself, persist in,
When we look at the above definition of courage, we find that to be a courageous person is a multi-faceted quality. We are called to be brave, strong, alert, persistent, firm, and bold. A courageous person does not succumb to fear. They may feel the fear, but they will keep pressing forward in the right direction.
Daniel was faced with fearful situations at various times. Each difficult situation looked different, but every one of them had the potential to get Daniel off track. In one situation, King Nebuchadnezzar asked the wise men in Babylon to interpret his dream but the King said that he wasn’t going to tell them the dream. The wise men had to figure it out or else they would get killed (Daniel 2).
Daniel was firm and strong in his resolve. He wasn’t overcome with fear and trepidation, and he knew that God was his only deliverer from this situation. He asked the King for a little bit of time to get the answer for him. That’s already very bold and courageous!! Then he asked his other three companions to pray to God for his mercy that He would give them the dream and the interpretation. It’s interesting the scripture doesn’t say that he was in sackcloth and ashes, and that he fasted to get the answer. There was calmness and confidence that God would give him what he needed!!
Do we believe God will give us what we need for the challenge facing us? We may cry and scream when we are faced with a seemingly impossible situation, but can we see God in the midst of it?
Our courage is not something that we can muster up to ensure that we can battle the forces against us, but it is the recognition of who God is!! King David, as powerful and as strong as he was, charged his son Solomon in the above scripture (1 Chronicles 28:20) to be courageous and look to God. He reminded Solomon that God will not fail him nor forsake him. The Lord will see Solomon through his journey and his assignment before God!!
Why do we need to be courageous?
Living a Christian life in a world that is full of unbelief, darkness, & ungodliness requires great courage!! There are many battles to be fought. Some are fighting for their marriages, others have unruly children, and there are some who have tough illnesses and disabilities. There are others who have been single for decades, believing for a godly man or woman and are still courageously waiting. A mother whose husband has gone to war and has to raise her newborn without her husband is strong and courageous. A woman abandoned by her husband requires firmness and bravery to move on and not fall apart. The teenage boy/girl who has to continually say no to the temptation of alcohol, sex, and drugs is exercising courageous determination in the midst of great peer pressure around them. The businessman who works with integrity where he can get promoted easier and faster if he is willing to make certain compromises and go along with shady practices shows persistence and solid character in the face of temptation!!
The faces of courage are all around us. Most of us may not consider ourselves courageous, but when we look at the choices we have made in order to serve Christ, we must admit, it has taken some degree of courage to be where we are at.
I will continue with the subejct of courage in the next devlotional.