Are you courageous in front of your enemies, problems, and challenges?
Most of us are not! See courage is not something you express in the moment, it’s something you build, for the moment.
COURAGE is the power to face challenges, fears, and difficulties with firmness.
Courage comes from the reserves of our HEART that are more powerful than our outside circumstances.
Webster says courage is,
“That quality of mind which enables one to encounter danger and difficulties with firmness, or without fear, or fainting of heart; valor; boldness; resolution.”
When we recognize that we are BIGGER and more IMPORTANT than our problems, we will GAIN the courage necessary to PERSEVERE and overcome!
So how does one come to believe and recognize they are BIGGER and more IMPORTANT than their problems?
You must begin by believing what God says first about Himself, and then about you.
In the text above, God tells the children of Israel, and by implication, all of his children, be courageous; not because of who they were, but because of who they know Him to be.
Once you know God’s character, then you must allow that knowledge to change how you see yourself. This is a process, so don’t be discouraged when you fail.
REMEMBER THIS TRUTH – Our obstacles will look large or small to us according to whether we are large or small.
That is if you see yourself as a grasshopper, or worm, that’s how you will face your enemies and your difficulties.
Note how the Israelites SAW themselves when facing the giants of their life.
“And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, AND SO WE WERE in their sight.” – Numbers 13:33
Knowing that God is with you, makes you bigger than any challenge or problem.
But the reality must be more than a mental assent to the truth. It must be a heart belief which can only come “by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” – Rom. 10:17
What would happen to your life, if you filled your mind first with knowing who God is, and then allowed that truth to color how you see yourself?
To know God’s character requires that we spend time reading His Word.
If you don’t have a daily practice of Bible reading, this is a good time to make a commitment to do it daily : ) Reach out to STAR 99.1 if you want some direction.
Meditate upon Prov. 24:10: “If thou faint in the day of adversity, thy strength is small.”
Joseph Benson a minister from the 1700s says the following about Proverbs 24:10 –
“If thou faint in the day of adversity…”
If thou art impatient and unable to bear sufferings; if thy resolution flag and thou give way to despondency or dejection of mind; thy strength is small — Hebrew, is narrow, it lies in a little compass; it is strait, as thy condition is; for there is an elegant allusion in the word rendered small, or narrow, in this clause, to that rendered adversity in the former. The sense is, this is a sign that thou hast but little Christian strength or courage, for that is best known by adversity.
Sean Isaacs
Director of Sales & Marketing
Star 99.1
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I think we need to remember that although we ourselves are small & can’t handle our problems & challenges in our own strength, we serve a BIG GOD Who is faithful to His promise that He will always be with us. As the saying goes,” if GOD brings you to it, He will see you through it”. As St. Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians, “I can do all things through GOD Who gives me strength.”
Also, I have read that courage is NOT the absence of fear. I have read many times that having courage means that we “feel the fear but do it anyway.” It is a greater virtue to press on & keep doing what GOD calls us to do, trusting GOD in spite of our fear, than to have no feelings of fear when faced with a situation where fear is a natural response.
So Great!!!!!! Yes, our strength and resolve comes from our belief in the Lord, and in that belief, we know He can do all things!!! He makes us able to face our challenges and either overcome them or find a workaround!!!
Thank you, Sean, for this vital reminder!!!!!!
My God is so much Bigger then any obstacle/problem I encounter. He is my strong tower who I run to and I am safe. Praise His Holy Name. He will never leave me nor forsake me. This is how I fight my battles knowing that my God is with me I will overcome. Thank you Sean for these reminders. I always look up because that is where my help comes from. GOD IS AWESOME. HE IS A GOOD GOOD FATHER. AMEN AND AMEN🙏 ❤ 🙏