Courage Essentials

God said "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to

obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate
from them, turning either to the right or to the left.
Then you will be successful in everything you do.
Joshua 1:7

Courage is defined as the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery.

It is possible for an individual to understand the will of God for their lives, be willing to obey, yet have no courage or bravery to arise and act to fulfil it.

Obedience is defined as the act or practice of being dutiful or submissive to instructions.

Any time we face trials and tribulations, God is always there, whether we acknowledge Him or not. He is always there providing courage for us. However, the choice is ours, we either accept or don't.

When we look through the book of Deuteronomy we realise that Moses and Joshua were great men of courage. This reminds me of a post I wrote a while back about, about the fact that we have the imprints of courage in our blood line. You can read the post here - BLOODLINE AND HERITAGE

We all have inbuilt courage, and I believe the adversities we go through is like boot camp to develop the courage within us further. The boot camp can be rigorous, painful and challenging, and sometimes this is what makes most of us give up before we grow the muscles of our courage any further. Adversities are there to help us to adopt new routines, habits and develop aspects of our physical, mental and emotional and spiritual being.

Everyday, we need the essence of courage to keep our balance and our stance, firmly rooted in God's will. We require courage to get us through our feelings, emotions any restrictions or limitations that might have been placed on us. Courage is required not just to endure, but to make the necessary changes we must make for our lives.

Going back to Deuteronomy Joshua Knew all about adversity, being part of Israel that wandered through the wilderness for 40 years. It is safe to say he definitely, from that experience, understood hardship, trials, and troubles - physical, relational and spiritual most probably emotional and mental to.

Do you feel the same where you are in life right now? Don't despair, I encourage you to look within and conjure up the courage God has placed within you.

Through Joshua's association with Moses, he grew up in faith and leadership abilities, and hence knew that in the midst of they went through in the wilderness, the Lord was with him and his people.

When Joshua was to succeed Moses (please read Deuteronomy 29 - 31 for completion) in leading the nation of Israel to the promised land, God spoke, enlightened and commanded Joshua about the courage and obedience he must have for his new role and journey ahead. His mandate of courage are recorded as thus:

• In Joshua 1:6: God said "Be strong and courageous, for you are the one who will lead these people to possess all the land I swore to their ancestors I would give them" God's encouragement to Joshua .

• Joshua 1:7: God said "Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the instructions Moses gave you. Do not deviate from them, turning either to the right or to the left. Then you will be successful in everything you do." God's encouragement and command of OBEDIENCE. 

• Joshua 1:9: "This is my command—be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” God's COMMANDMENT of courage.

As God encouraged and commanded Joshua, He is saying the same to you today. Through that trial or situation or role that you are going through or about to go through, God is saying and commanding you to have courage; remembering that God is always with you.

Yes, it is a great story of courage that Moses and Joshua presented, but the questions we should ask ourselves is "what can we learn from their willingness to obey and be courageous, in the face of adversity? A few things we can learn are as follows:

• Defeat is never a viable option: Even though Moses faced Pharaoh and his mighty army, and Joshua faced problems that impeded Israel's claim to Canaan, they did not consider giving up. What problem are you facing that you feel like giving up? I encourage you not to. Like Moses and Joshua, set your face on advancement and victory that God has already given to you. Remember He has already completed your end, and it is good. Know that your success lies within an unshakable God.

• Recall past victories and God's faithfulness: When we look through the book of Deuteronomy we see that Moses and Joshua, when faced with new problems, reminded themselves of how God helped them in the past. In Joshua 3, specifically, we see that when Joshua had to lead Israel through the Jordan, and he was afraid, BUT he remembered how God parted the red sea and was encouraged. Don't forget the past victories God has given you, remember them and be encouraged. The Lord that did it then can do it again and do greater things.

• Have the right attitude and look to God for help: Embracing the spirit of courage, helps instill the right attitude within us, which is to believe that "with God, nothing is impossible". It enables us to believe His word and promises. Moses and Joshua knew that they could not do or win any battle or progress to the promised land without God's help.

• Do not be discouraged by inner fears or difficulties: There is something called the enemy within and it is this that most times, presents fear within us. It keeps us rooted to the spot in fear of doing what God says we should do. Developing the strength of the courage within us through God's word and His abilities, will enable you to arise and obey in confidence.

• Use the resources at hand to the best of your ability: This sometimes can be a sensitive point for most of us. When God says do something, we tend to give God a list of all resources we need before we even start the work. However, like God asked Moses in Exodus "what is that in your hand"? He might be asking you the same thing. I wrote about this in the post called "WHAT IS THAT IN YOUR HAND" PLEASE READ. It will bless and encourage you immensely.

• Have success and victory in mind: We serve a God who has completed the end before the beginning. Thus, as long as God says do it, no matter the obstacle or how difficult it might seem, keep going and believing that the victory is yours. Moses and Joshua must have thought within themselves that how in the world will they get to this promised land, after so many years in the wilderness. However, we know because they believed and obeyed wholeheartedly in God and held onto His promise of victory, they succeeded.

We all need courage every day; at home, at work on the streets or at play. It takes courage to stand up in the face of adversity, to stand up for what is right, in a society that is bent on self destruction. It takes courage to stand for what you believe when everyone and everything is up against you. It takes courage to say that God is still in control, even when you are in the eye of the storm. It takes courage to patiently wait on God, being obedient to do all that He asks you to do, no matter how ridiculous it might seem (remember Noah and the ark).

It takes courage to live a life of integrity, when compromise seems to be the order of the day.
Despite all of these, not having the courage to walk in obedience to God's will should NOT be an option. There is courage in your bloodline as shown through Moses and Joshua and all the other great men and women of the Bible, like David and Esther. There is courage within you.

As you live out the realities of your week, I encourage you to ask God to give you the same spirit of courage and obedience of Joshua and Moses. Embrace this courage, work at it through obedience and see God magnify Himself in your life, bringing you to your promised land; making Him famous along your way.



Much Love, Remi
***pictures by photobucket***