Be Strong and Very Courageous!
Have you ever had a thought or an idea that you felt God strongly impressed in your heart for you to pursue? That thing that is constantly nagging in your heart, mind, and spirit! The still, small yet strong and persistent voice of the Holy Spirit that keeps telling you to move in a particular direction, to do something different or something new!
Here is what God is calling and commanding us to do: Be strong and very courageous.
Sometimes, what it takes to move from the idea phase to the implementation phase is having unwavering faith and boldness in God, who has given you that idea to pursue. Not in your ability to implement or your expertise! Neither are you to focus on your current circumstances, and definitely not on your financial constraints! Instead, constantly focusing and looking unto Jesus, the Author and Finisher of our faith! (Hebrews 12: 2 NKJV) .
When God commands us to be strong and courageous, He is not telling us to pause and take some time to prepare ourselves for that mission/job/business! He is neither telling us first to go and take a course to supplement what He needs to take us! God is saying, See, I have commanded that you step out in obedience! Move now! Not tomorrow! Move as you are to where God wants you to be! Regardless of whether you are looking to change careers, praying for a marriage partner, or trusting God for growth in your business. God is saying, now it’s time to look at me! Put your whole faith in God and totally and wholly depend on Him to do it for you! Just start moving in obedience!
Furthermore, God, who has started that good work, that good thought He has planted in our minds, He is faithful and will bring it to accomplishment, for He is a faithful God who has exalted His Word above His name! Our only requirement is that we be strong and very courageous to obey and implement that which God has put in us. For God says, He is faithful to accomplish His purpose in us and through us!
God repeatedly reminded Joshua that he needed to be strong and courageous! Would you imagine leading the children of Israel after having a predecessor like Moses? A man who saw God face to face and did mighty things with signs and wonders and delivered the Israelites from the Egyptians! As the next leader, you may doubt whether you are fit enough to fill those shoes! I know I would!
However, God, being such a merciful and loving God and Father, constantly reminds Joshua: “Just be strong and courageous!” Please don’t trust your understanding, your experience, or your previous prowess.
So what does it really mean to be strong and courageous?
1. Walking in obedience to the Word of God and to the call of God upon your life.
That moment when you hear the voice of God calling you to do something or go in a particular direction in life, He then commands that we be strong and very courageous. It calls for walking in obedience to God’s voice! Walking in total obedience, especially when you don’t see results or when there is no defined pathway, can definitely be scary and, at times, difficult for a human being!
So here is where obedience comes in! We are to prayerfully seek God and meditate on His Word to hear what God desires of us clearly. After having a clear direction and conviction in your heart from God, we are then to obey and act on what God is telling us in faith. Being confident that God, who has started this good work in us, will complete it. (Phil 1: 6 NKJV)
We often get stuck in our minds on how difficult it is to do what God is telling us to do, or on how someone is better qualified and equipped than we are! God is not requesting us; rather, He is commanding us to be strong and courageous and to believe that He will do it for us. Today, prayerfully go to God and tell Him I will obey and start moving!
Start actioning that which God is telling you! It’s only until we obey that God starts bringing all the things needed for our success, not before! God is waiting to display His Glory and provision at the start of your obedience! Not because we have all the necessary materials or equipment required for the task! Our obedience will cause provision to come our way!
God is more pleased with our obedience than our sacrifices! He delights when we walk in obedience! “Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed than the fat of rams. 1 Sam 15: 22 NKJV)
2. To rely on God alone for strength, wisdom, and direction, not your experience
The moment God commands us to be strong and courageous, He is also calling us to wholly focus and rely on Him! Being strong and brave is not about our own ability! Instead, we completely trust God and Him alone! Your responsibility is to trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; In all our ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths ( Proverbs 3: 5-6 NKJV).
In today’s world, people may be considered to have attained maturity, and significant growth may be measured by how independent they are and by their ability to deliver tasks independently. In fact, asking for help may be considered a form of weakness! <p>In contrast, spiritual maturity and growth are measured by how fully dependent we are on God. Paul says “Being not sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God” (1 Cor 3: 5 NKJV). Our success then becomes God’s problem! Not ours! God is the one who grants victory and success! In our obedience is the start of our success!
Joshua had been Moses’ assistant for approximately 40 years! This is almost equivalent to the lifespan of some of our careers. By the time Joshua was told to lead the people of Israel, he had years of experience on his resume that, humanly speaking, was sufficient to help him lead the children of Israel! However, we later see how the lack of seeking God’s counsel in Joshua 9:14-15 NKJV led them to make a treaty of peace with their enemies, the Gibeonites, whom they were meant to conquer and destroy!
Constantly going back to the drawing board and asking, Lord, how would you like me to proceed? What would you rather do about this situation? At times, our current success may be obscured by the reliance on our past experiences and wins!
3. Courage is the resolve to forge ahead despite foreseeable obstacles
When Moses died, I can imagine how the children of Israel felt! The man whom God had used to bring them to the Promised Land had now rested, and maybe they feared that the dream of Canaan, the Promised Land full of honey and milk, might have died with him. It’s interesting that as they lay in the plains of Moab, while in the mourning period, they could actually see Canaan!
Sometimes the taste of our victory is just barely within reach, yet still so far! We may often get so discouraged by the many obstacles and challenges we have already experienced and foresee! God tells Joshua, I know my servant Moses is dead, but it’s now your turn to arise!
God says He can see our current state! He is calling you and me to dust off our garments and arise! God is giving us a chance! After we have wallowed in our pity party, it’s time to change our focus and rise. God, despite our shortcomings and past discouragements or failures, still wants us to arise. Courage is knowing that your past is only temporary and it’s not there to define you or your future! Only God’s Word defines who we are to become!
Courage is not manifested in the absence of hardships, but despite them!
Therefore, be bold and very courageous, for the Lord has already given you that very thing He has planted in your heart!
