COURAGE, BRAVEHEART

Today I was reading in 1 Samuel about the Israelites going into battle against the Philistines and something struck me. These Israelite soldiers were the army of the Most High God. They were His chosen. He had promised that He would go before them and that He would lead them wherever they went. He had also promised that He would victoriously deliver their enemies into their hands.

Amen! Uh huh. Uh huh. Uh huh. Thank you very much. That was easy. Let’s head on home!

Screeeeech. Pause. Not so fast…it wasn’t going to be that easy. It should have been. But it wasn’t. Because something happened when these soldiers stepped onto that battlefield in the face of Goliath’s challenging words. Fear crept in and they FORGOT who they were.

They forgot.

Oh man. Here they were, God’s chosen army, and yet they allowed fear to crumble any shred of courage they had. “Wait a minute. What about all that stuff God had just told you that you were so confident of before. Where did that go?” So these warriors, instead of fighting in the name of the Lord, they withdrew and hid and waited for someone braver to step up and step out.

And they waited. And waited. And waited.

For 40 days they were the frozen forgetters. They had forgotten who they were. Whose they were. Who goes before and behind them. Who was empowering them. And who had already given them the results of the battle before them.

Have you ever done this?

O brother, I know I have. I can get so amped up and be ready to go to battle, roaring in blind confidence and bravery in one moment, and just like that, I can lose it all. I allow fear to come in and cloud my vision. To cloud the truth. And then the bravery is gone and there is nothing left but a weak and fearful, scared little girl questioning everyone and everything.

And that’s exactly what happened with the Israelites. Fear and doubt and forgetfulness and distraction stopped then from being who they were called to be. Who they already were. They compared themselves, small and incapable, to the massive warrior before them and concluded that there was no possible way he could be defeated.

But the Lord.

The Lord, in all of His wisdom and in all of His graciousness, He brought a young boy after His own heart, to remind these frozen forgetters, these “brave and courageous” warriors, these fearful brothers, who they really were.

We all need reminding from time to time. And the Lord is so patient and so gracious to continue to remind His people (us!) again and again. He’s been doing this since the beginning of time, because we have forgotten since the beginning of time. Forgotten His goodness. His faithfulness. That He is trustworthy. That He is who He says He is and that He does what He says He’ll do. That He loves us and works ALL THINGS for our good. That He has a plan and that plan can be trusted, even when we can’t see the course.

But David. David KNEW who he was. He was a simple shepherd boy, who God had called and chosen to become a King. He too was God’s chosen! He knew he was a child of the Almighty Living God. He knew that it was God who empowered and strengthened him to fight the great battles that lay before Him. He knew that God was the great provider and protector. He knew that when God speaks, He acts. That when He promises, He follows through. That when He shouts and proclaims victory over defeat, that He makes it so. It was not David the shepherd boy stepping out to fight the great Goliath. No. it was the Almighty God stepping out to defeat the seemingly undefeatable giant.

David, child of the Almighty God, was stepping forward not in his own strength or wisdom. Not in his own power and might. But in God’s strength. God’s power. God’s wisdom and might, knowing His full identity and power comes from being one with Him. And when we fully trust and believe that God is who He says He is & that He will do what He says He will do, that’s the moment that bravery and courage springs forth and we charge ahead in full confidence.

It isn’t about what we bring to the table. It’s about whether or not we are willing to step up to the table at all, knowing where our full confidence lies. It is about whether or not we will allow the Lord to bring ALL HE IS forward in battle, to make us successful at the thing He has called us to in the first place.

Where is He calling you? In what areas have you forgotten? Where has fear stopped you from living out your full potential and full purpose? Where are you stuck? Frozen?

We are not meant to live in fear. Don’t let it cause you to be a frozen forgetter. Instead, rest in the One who goes before us and who follows behind us. The One who calls us to stand tall and courageous because His power reigns over all and because He secures our victory.

That is hope. That is power. That is victory. That is what it means to be a warrior in the army of the Most High God.

We rest not in ourselves and our own abilities, but in the power and hope, the grace and presence of Father God. We are His children. It is our job to simply trust His words. To trust His promises. To trust His truths. And to trust that He has every victory.

So when you stand in the face of fear, friends. Don’t freeze. Don’t forget. Just fight. Knowing the battle has already been won, because you Braveheart, are a warrior in the army of the Most High God. And if He can turn a simple shepherd boy into a great King, just imagine what He has in store for you.