How often the Bible tells us in scripture to 'take courage', 'do not fear'...And there's good reason for it. Scary things happen to us in this world. We face trials such as illness and heartbreak. No one is so saintly they miss out on trials and tribulations. They come to us all. Often we cry out, "But WHY?" We stumble. We fail. We weep. We realize that we are weak in places we never suspected we might be. We are tested and tried. The awful things happen. We are numb with grief. Yet the sun still rises each morning and the stars shine out at night. The earth continues to turn and life goes on, even if we feel surely we are dying inside.
At some point we realize that we must face this fear and get on with the task before us.
Sometimes we must travel with the fear, despite it's weight. We put one foot in front of the other, well aware of the fear of making a wrong decision, of falling once more, of failing. Do not despair. Whoever said that we could only be courageous if we had no fear at all? Choosing to move forward when fear is weighing you down is a high form of courage.
As I've told my girls when they faced the most difficult things before them, "Sometimes the only way to go is 'through it'." To do that is to realize that we can't turn back time. We can't undo the hurt. We can't stay where we are. We must move onward regardless of what is before us. Often that is when we lean hardest on hope, the belief that whatever now may be, will not always be so. This too shall end and we shall again be on the other side.
Take heart. The Christ came and said that He will return. In this season especially, take heart. We are slowly, sometimes painfully and heavily, moving towards the coming of The King. Hope is, after all, courage, isn't it?
4 comments:
I’ve found hope and faith definitely go hand in hand. We may not know the exact path our journey will take but with hope and faith we put one foot in front of the other ... trusting God has predetermined each step. If we step into his footprints the journey is so much easier. Lovely thoughts, Terri!
Oh Terri, this post was so elegantly written and so poignant....i felt like you knew i needed it! Oh, but life's ugly times always seem to rear their head now and then, for everyone. This was so very comforting. Between a teenage son's struggle with post concussion syndrome that will involve us traveling out of state for treatment for most of the winter, leaving my other two boys and husband behind, and then the awful experience our family has had with predjudice because i attended a different Christian church for a year.....it's been one of the toughest years. But you are right, the hurts can't be undone and we must move through it and still hold onto the Lord, not becoming bitter.
May Jehovah bless you and yours this season.
This was a great post! Thank you.
Lovely!
"Fear not".
One of my favorite Bible verses.
Fear is the opposite of faith!
And...
Courage is contagious.
Love,
Tracey
XOX
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