Worship for the Weekday
Comfort and Peace
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Joshua 1:8-10
8 Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. 9 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."
Psalm 31:24
24 Be of good courage, And He shall strengthen your heart, All you who hope in the LORD.
John 16:33
33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.”
I’m not really sure why I am focused on courage today. In fact, this is the topic I was thinking about yesterday and really didn’t have the time to gather my thoughts. When I looked up courage at dictionary.com I found this: Courage permits one to face extreme dangers and difficulties without fear; n. The state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger, fear, or vicissitudes with self-possession, confidence, and resolution; bravery.
No, I’m not feeling as if I’m in danger. I’m not even particularly afraid of anything that I can think of—at least nothing new! So I asked myself Why do I need courage? What is the message here? Well, I’m not sure of the personal application at this point, but I have learned that when God gives us a message, a word, a thought, we are to follow through until we understand what He wants us to know.
The verse from John is one of my “hallmark” verses. If you notice, it’s on the banner of this site. I take a deep breath and relax a little every time I read it. Somehow Jesus telling us to take heart is very comforting. The meaning is very close to being of good courage, and don’t be discouraged. As I reflect on these passages I realize sometimes there is no particular situation or circumstance that causes us to become discouraged or to lose heart. Sometimes life just bogs us down.
It’s so easy to get to the point where we feel as if we’re spinning our wheels, isn’t it? Add on the extra tasks and duties of the holiday season, and one can get pretty overwhelmed. God wants us to know that we are not alone in our journey, in our struggles. He is there with us every inch of the way. The way we can be assured of that is to meditate upon the Book of the Law day and night.
Jesus has overcome the world. Because of him, we can face anything. But we don’t face it alone.
My prayer today is that you take heart and be of good courage. And that you remember the one who is the source of all comfort and peace.
Mary
Labels: comfort, courage, discouragement, hope
Hope and Good Courage
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Psalms 146:1-6
Praise ye the Lord. Praise the Lord, O my soul. While I live will I praise the Lord: I will sing praises unto my God while I have any being. Put not your trust in princes, [nor] in the son of man, in whom [there is] no help. His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. Happy [is he] that [hath] the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope [is] in the Lord his God: Which made heaven, and earth, the sea, and all that therein [is]: which keepeth truth for ever:
Deuteronomy 31:6-8
Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he [it is] that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. And Moses called unto Joshua, and said unto him in the sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage: for thou must go with this people unto the land which the Lord hath sworn unto their fathers to give them; and thou shalt cause them to inherit it. And the Lord, he [it is] that doth go before thee; he will be with thee, he will not fail thee, neither forsake thee: fear not, neither be dismayed. The Lord God goes before us. I’ve come to terms with this truth recently in a rather surprising way! Our son has dealt with some undiagnosed learning disabilities his entire life. At 19 (this year) we finally received a valid diagnosis, and so are able to acquire some services that will allow him to live a full and productive life. My initial response to the situation was not one of joy, though. I was angry and sad—in fact, I was both outraged and devastated that he did not receive the help he should have had while in the school system.
Last week, I met one of my dear brothers in Christ for our annual Christmas “meet at the book store coffee shop” to get caught up on the year past and share plans for the upcoming year. While we were talking I had the revelation that I was being quite sinful in that I was limiting God and his power and doubting his wisdom. I had shared that I was so sad and angry that my son might not have the life he “could have” had if he had of received more help during his school years. Then I posed (to myself as much as my friend), “Who am I to question God?” Further, I shared, “How do I know that God did not intend the exact path for my son that he was on throughout his life?”
Even if the path was not the one “originally” planned for him, God surely will use everything my son has experienced and struggled with and celebrated and use it for his good and bountiful future! I wasn’t looking at all the wonderful qualities my son has, at all the ways he sees the world as a godly and faithful young man. I was discounting God’s ability and desire to overcome whatever obstacles man puts in our way and to turn it into something more, even better, than it might have been otherwise.
These verses tell us not to “trust in man” or to rely upon the wisdom or inherent goodness of human kind. We are rather to lean upon God and his understanding, wisdom, power and will. His knowledge is perfect. His wisdom is without flaw. His understanding far surpasses anything the human mind can comprehend. My son’s hope has always been in the Lord. It is my hope that has faltered and been overshadowed by doubt and fear.
God not only prepares us for our future, he sustains us in our present and transforms our past to equip us to do His good will. If that is not reason for hope and good courage, I don’t know what is. I’ll say it again: God not only prepares us for our future, he sustains us in our present and transforms our past to equip us to do His good will.
My prayer today is that you will Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid. And that you will sing praises unto your God while you have any being.
Mary
Labels: courage, faith, fear, future, hope
Take Courage, Fear Not
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Isaiah 35:3,4 NASB
They will see the glory of the LORD, The majesty of our God. Encourage the exhausted, and strengthen the feeble. Say to those with anxious heart, "Take courage, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you."
Are you feeling exhausted and feeble? All of us get to the point sometimes where we just feel spent. Especially around the holiday season, we can get run down and lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas. All the added activity and increased number of tasks can absolutely overwhelm us.
It’s important to remember, though, that no matter what we are going through, no matter how hard life may be at any given point in time, we can have hope. That hope is not borne of desperation or of childish beliefs. It is a hope borne of a magnanimous and omnipotent God and His promise to us.
The broken hearted and those who rejoice have the same promise and the same hope because they worship the same God. Sometimes, that hope is the only way we can make it through the day. Sometimes that hope compels us to go an extra mile, to try a little harder, to endure one more hour. God’s words to Isaiah are words for all time, not just for the people of that day. “Take courage, fear not.”
This is short and sweet today. I don’t think there is much I need to add. The words from Isaiah speak volumes all on their own.
My prayer today is that you take courage in the promise and the hope of a good and loving God. And that you remember that he has worked throughout history to uplift and sustain his children.
Mary
Labels: courage, fear, hope
