"Courageous"
January 19, 2012
Courageous means brave, bold, not being deterred by danger.
First and foremost, watch the Christian movie called "Courageous" written and directed by Sherwood Baptist Church. They do an amazing job and have other films entitled; Fly Wheel, Facing Giants & Fireproof.
Last night I had the amazing opportunity to sit down with my husband and watch the movie "Courageous." It was the most amazing movie, very up in your face realization on how we should be handling our faith. It shows how a group of men come together and pledge their devotion of courage to their families to lead them through their own actions to Christ. Setting an example of God's unconditional love and devotion to our family each and every day should be a high priority. I realized while watching this movie that I have many "blind spots" in my faith and in the way I portray my walk with Christ to my own family. I am very aware of my place in life when it pertains to God. I know where I am going when I die, I devote my life to Christ daily & I recognize the sins of my life.
We fail to remember that our actions, the way we approach people (very guilty) is a direct reflection of how others see Christ in us. The bible says in Matthew 7:12, "Son in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you." It seems that inside my head during the day I say to myself, "I cannot wait to get the kids, they are going to be soooo excited to see me, and it's going to be an awesome night." Then BAM, I pick them up, Bray is moaning of being tired, Hunter has a stomach ache screaming for a snack and Rex is in squeal mode with high pitch sounds loud enough to shatter the windows. Before I realize it I am fussing, moaning, complaining and looking forward to bed time. Things change from minute to minute and what you say to yourself so gracefully doesn't always exit your mouth so elegantly. It's a struggle every single minute. Have you ever heard someone say, "stinking thinking, don't have it" well I don't have an issue with stinking thinking, it's the part that sends the thinking out of my mouth that gets it all scrambled up. It is thought of a lot nicer than it is spoken. I speak volumes of love and admiration for my husband daily and then yell at him first thing when I get home. Who does that kind of stuff? We ALL do! We all sin; we all fall short of riding the heaven trolley, because we ARE NOT there yet! We are learning through struggles to ground our faith into what it needs to be.
Guys get over the fact that you are not perfect; God doesn't expect you to be perfect. What God expects is that you make it a daily habit to "try" and when you fail, record it, repent it and don't relive it. Learning from your mistakes helps to build grace. You cannot take the back seat and let every single learning opportunity pass you by because it's too hard. Get up, get moving, and get to falling so you can start standing firm in your faith. Don't worry about taking the wrong direction, turn that baby around and start heading the right way. It doesn't matter how long it took, you are making it, right? It doesn't matter that night is soon approaching, you got lights baby! Nothing is going to come hand delivered, wrapped in a little blue box labeled Tiffany's to you or anyone else. You have got to get up and find your destiny that God has planned for your life. The only tool you need is Courage, that tool is, you guessed it absolutely free, no shipping charge, straight out of Heaven from your Godly Father! The bible says in Luke 11:9, "So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you."
Deuteronomy 31:6 says, "Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them; for the LORD they God will never leave you nor forsake you." NO matter what we do or say, God is never going to stop rooting for us, praying for us or trying to lead us. When you devote your life to Christ something changes on the inside of you. You become aware of things that just don't seem right, you feel a sense of closeness and dedication to God to "try" to do the right thing at all times.
Peter doubted Jesus when he told him to walk across the water. Peter let his own fears settle in and he doubted Jesus's word. Being courageous means letting go of all fear, trusting God completely with every aspect of our lives. Yes, there are times when you will feel so fearful that letting go of everything seems the fastest way to lose it all, but God doesn't want you to doubt his love. It's very common for people to become so frustrated with the heavy burden they have in their lives that they give up and walk away when the going gets tough. It's very easy to throw the towel in and become selfish thinking our way is always right, but it's wrong.
Have you ever stood up for something that is right and have everyone walk away from you, leaving you standing up alone? You suddenly feel like there is nothing under your feet when you walk. Panic begins to settle in. You begin to feel like the walls are closing in around you. It's a very difficult place to be. We need others, we need fellowship, but in those moments the only person you truly need is God. 1 Corinthians 16:13, "Be on your guard, stand firm in the faith, be men of courage, be strong." Not all those you travel with will have the courage that you have; sometimes all it takes is for them to see your courage in action. Be that courage that someone needs to believe. Remember Jesus stood alone, walked alone, and felt the pain of having everyone turn their backs on Him, but he didn't waiver in His faith, he exclaimed, "Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing." Luke 23:34.
Whatever the issue is whether you see a way out or around the problem, God is the answer. Being an outcast in a crowd by following Gods wisdom and guidance is better off than spending an eternity searching for peace. Jesus said in John 14:6, "Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Believe that, and meditate on it daily with your thoughts, actions and prayers. You will NOT get to the kingdom of heaven without first having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It's a simple prayer, but a lifetime of changes that need to be made and addressed. It can all start with a simple prayer to God inquiring about a BIG thing called Courage.
Just do it~
Kylie Davis
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