How To Be Courageous In The Face Of Adversity?

Joshua 1:6-7 - "Be strong and courageous, for you shall give this people possession of the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous; be careful to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, so that you may have success wherever you go."     NASU 

• Being Courageous Is A Choice 

Joshua was given a command by God to be courageous. Then he was told to be very courageous. In other words, being courageous is a choice that we can choose to make.
 
A person who is courageous is one who tells himself he is going to be courageous at that moment. We all possess a courageous or brave spirit. Some of us fail at being courageous when we choose not to be.

It isn't because we can't. It is because we chose not to be when a challenge arises.
 
When a courageous person is faced with new circumstances or even dangerous situations, he believes he must confront them and does.
 
All one has to do is remember the courageous NYPD and FDNY officers running into the burning twin towers on September 11, 2001 (911) to see courage in action.
 
They choose to enter those towers. It was their choice. They choose to be courageous.
 
There can be no running from the challenge as this would not be a person who is courageous but would be more in line with a person who is cowardly. 

• Courageous People Believe In Someone Or Something 

The courageous person will see himself as one who has to stand up for what he believes to be true.
 
Moses had recently died and up to this point Joshua had been Moses' assistant. God spoke directly with Moses and Moses made the decisions based on what God had told him.
 
This is all going to change. God is now going to speak directly to Joshua. Joshua will be the new leader. Joshua will be making decisions based on God's commands.
 
Joshua was going to lead the Israelites into battle and all he has to do is believe God's promises. In Joshua 1:5 God promises him - "No man will be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you." NASU
 
Now it is on Joshua's shoulders to believe what God told him.
 
God tells us the same thing in Hebrews 13:5 - that He will not forsake us. Do you want to be courageous? Then believe God's promises when your faith is being given a test because that is what courageous warriors of God do. 

• Today's Challenges 

What challenges are you facing in your life where you need to command yourself to be courageous?
 
When you take a stand to be courageous it is a mental decision. The more you know God's Word the easier it will be for you to be courageous.
 
I heard a preacher say one time, "If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything."
 
People who know God's Word will not fall for anything or at least they shouldn't.
 
Go ahead make your decision to be strong and courageous today.
 
Stand up to the challenges that are before you today and every day and when you do you will be courageous.
 
Think On This:
 
Courage is not the absence of fear, but the conquest of it.
 
Remember, you are your own doctor when it comes to curing cold feet.

Stay Pumped,

Gary A. Serago

Minister of God's Word

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