Faith empowers us to face fears and challenges boldly. When we trust God’s power and presence, we can stand firm in difficult situations, speak truth, and act courageously for His kingdom.
Joshua 1:9, “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Following are some of the sources for spiritual courage.
Ø Obviously, the first and most important is to look to God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as our ultimate source of courage (Psalm 31:24; Isaiah 41:10; Jeremiah 1:5).
Ø We hold onto our identity and secure position “in Christ” (Ephesians 1:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17).
Ø We remind ourselves, and praise God for the “blessed hope” we have in Christ (Romans 15:13; Titus 2:13).
Ø We look to God’s Word as a source of courage (Psalm 56:3; 119:105; Hebrews 4:12).
Ø We look to believers who are stronger and more mature in the faith for an example of courage and for human counselling for courage (Proverbs 11:14; 1 Corinthians 11:1; Hebrews 12:1).
Ø We spend time in communion with God through prayer which produces courage (Psalm 27:14; Philippians 4:6-7; Colossians 4:2; 1 Peter 5:7).
Ø We also look to creation for inspiration of courage (Psalm 19:1; Romans 1:20; Colossians 1:16).
All these are possible because we believe in the God who is active in all these areas, that’s faith in action. We do not sit back and give in to the things which discourage us, which hurt us, and that make us ineffective for Christ. It is our responsibility to seek God’s resources in our lives for overcoming fear and timidity, as that is the nature of God’s Spirit who lives in us. 2 Timothy 1:7, for God gave us a Spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control.
Sometimes we will need help in identifying and removing the things in our lives which cause doubts, anxiety, laziness, unfaithfulness, impurity, fear, lying, anger, and offence. This is all part of putting off the old self with its practices and putting on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator (Colossians 3:9-10 loosely quoted). But this is necessary if we want to walk in the victory that the Lord Jesus Christ offers us.
Faith in God is the in mechanism within the believer that actives all the resources God has provided so we can be people of courage.
