No Excuses

Feb 4, 2015 by Jeanette Hanscome

This week, a small prayer group that I’m part of focused on courage.

“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”

The words of Joshua 1:9 sparked a wonderful discussion. Then one insightful friend’s point took us in a thought-provoking new direction: “I often forget that courage is a command of God.”

A command? I looked at the verse again. It is!

Not a suggestion.

Not a gentle, fatherly, “Go on, honey, I’m right here. But remember, if you get too scared you don’t have to do this.”

A command.

I often forget this too, conveniently.

The word command sounds so harsh, so inflexible and insensitive. So unkind for a Heavenly Father who has our best interest at heart.

I command you to be brave. I am telling you to face your fear head on.

I remember how startling it was when I realized that I could not recall a single biblical account where God accepted fear, or even very real limitations, as a valid excuse for getting out of something.

God not only didn’t except excuses, but He got pretty mad when Moses reminded Him, “But I don’t speak very well,” and the first men who entered the Promised Land (finally, after all that traveling) came back with, “It’s scary in there!”

I still feel unsettled when I reread Jesus’ Parable of the Talents and the master calls the fearful servant, who buried his one talent, “Wicked and lazy.” And “Worthless.” Wait, what? That’s mean! I might have done the same thing!

But as I considered this again, I realized that commanding courage isn’t nearly as harsh as it sounds when God is the one calling for it, “for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9) When God requires courage, He promises to go through the process with us. He always, without fail, rewards it.

The steps that have led to the most exciting experiences and growth in my life took courage. Some steps only required a few steps out of my area of comfort; others called for more guts than I thought I could ever work up. Opting out of any of them would have been a mistake, because I would have missed out on what God had for me on the other said. According to my friend’s reminder this week, I also would have been disobeying. Talk about motivation!

As I shared with the group, God’s greatest work requires courage. This is true whether He’s asking us to walking to a room full of people we don’t know and pretend we feel confident or accept a complete do-over in life.

But the rewards are worth it.

 

When has God called you to an assignment (big or small) that required courage? How did you respond? How did He remind you that He was with you? What were the rewards?