It's Not Natural

Warriors Arise: March 10, 2022

Deuteronomy 31:6 Be strong and of good courage, do not fear nor be afraid of them; for the Lord your God, He is the One who goes with you. He will not leave you nor forsake you.”

I receive courage, so I encourage others.

It is not natural to be courageous. Courage is something that i built up just like faith. We have all been given a measure of faith, according to Scripture. When we face adversity and draw on the faith we have been given to overcome the adversity our faith grows. We can believe God will come through the next time adversity rises against us. courage operates in the same fashion.

It is not natural to be courageous. You may find a child who is courageous. They will climb the walls without fear. Why is that? Well, they climb onto their toddler chair and nothing bad happened. They climbed onto their Daddy's chair and nothing bad happened. They climbed onto the table and nothing happened, maybe a little scolding by Mom. They climbed onto the counter to get a cup out of the cupboard and nothing happened. The climbing continued. Ability and courage was developed with each climb. Even if they rolled off, jumped off or took a dive and then rolled all went well. When does courage start to level off and become something of our past? For me, when I stopped dreaming of possibilities. Without the dream there seemed to be no motivation for the adventure, to try something new, to live beyond my comfort zones, safeties and securities.

We need courage when we are called to do the impossible. When someone tells you that you can't, how do you respond? Do you go ahead and try or shrug it off and walk away? What if God tells you to do the impossible? Then how do you respond? There are a lot of people in the Bible who were challenged to find courage to do what God had told them to do; Abraham, Gideon, Nehemiah, Paul, and the list goes on. Do you know how many times in Scripture Joshua is told to be strong and courageous?

• Deuteronomy 31:7-8 (NKJV) Then Moses called Joshua and said to him in the sight of all Israel, “Be strong and of good courage, for you must go with this people to the land which the Lord has sworn to their fathers to give them, and you shall cause them to inherit it. 8 And the Lord, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”

• Joshua 1:6 (NKJV) Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them.

• Joshua 1:7 (NKJV) Only be strong and very courageous,

• Joshua 1:9 (NKJV) Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

• Joshua 1:18 (NKJV) Whoever rebels against your command and does not heed your words, in all that you command him, shall be put to death. Only be strong and of good courage.”

• Joshua 10:25 (NKJV) Then Joshua said to them, “Do not be afraid, nor be dismayed; be strong and of good courage, for thus the Lord will do to all your enemies against whom you fight.”

We think we encourage someone one time and they should have all the courage they need to do what is before them, to overcome their fear and go after their dreams. I don't know if Joshua had a dream to lead the children of Israel, but he did have a dream of living free from slavery in the promise land. He knew both would happen if he followed God. God had appointed him the position of leading the people into the promise land and establishing themselves. Many times he had to remind the people, encourage them to do what God had put before them to do. The first time he tried, the people did not listen. Even when Caleb spoke up, the people did not listen. Joshua and Caleb were two of the 12 spies that went into the promise land to spy out the land. They came back and encouraged the people to follow God into the promise land, but the other 10 spies discouraged the people.

Do you discourage people from following God? Do you tell them their dreams are too big? Do you try to talk them out of what they have burning in their heart to accomplish? Or do you encourage them to follow God? Do you tell them their dreams aren't big enough? Do you talk them into following everything God has put into their heart to accomplish?

I receive courage, so I encourage others.

Father, those questions hit hard. Of course, I want to be reasonable, sensible and wise; however, I wonder if I have received Your words of encouragement in my life. Maybe I can't give them to others because I haven't received them for myself. Forgive me for discouraging others from following after the dreams You have placed in their heart. Who am I to question their dreams? Who am I to bring discouragement to what You have prepared for them to do? I pray today I would be the encourager You could use to compel others to follow You wholeheartedly with the dreams You have place within them. I pray I would align with words of courage and wisdom. I pray I would offer my help for them to accomplish the dreams You have placed within them. I ask for You to fill me with courage to dream beyond what I think is possible. If I am not dreaming beyond what I think is possible, then I am only thinking in human terms and do not need to trust You for the supernatural. You always bring the supernatural. You always make possible what is impossible by my hand and efforts. I look to You to be filled with courage and to encourage others in Jesus' name amen.

A Warrior in the Lord’s Army,

Veridee Joy Hand

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