“This is my command—Be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
(Joshua 1:9 NLT)
As you read these words above, do you feel strong and courageous, or afraid and discouraged? I have days when I feel strong and courageous, and other days when I lean towards being afraid and discouraged. I also feel quite confident that you and I share these similarities as we go through our lives and all that entails by being human. Life has its share of peaks and valleys, and God knew that on those particular days of rough roads and potholes, we would need the Bible for regular doses of encouragement and hope, along with the understanding that the Lord is with us wherever we go.
As I type out these words with a soothing cup of coffee beside me, I am not feeling overly strong or courageous right now because of a nagging work-related injury to my shoulder. On the plus side, I can still use my fingers and laptop computer, and for that, I am grateful. In the afraid/discouraged category, despite God’s command in Joshua 1:9, to not be, I am currently nursing a C+. I understand God’s promise to be with me wherever I go, but as I am sure you agree, it’s not always as easy to win over one’s heart and soul when the devil whispers his lies to convince you otherwise. I am also dealing with a demanding personal situation where I need God to fight the battle so that I can remain calm.
“The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay calm.” (Exodus 14:14 NLT)
Why am I sharing these things with you? It’s simple. I believe that as believers in Jesus Christ, we can learn from each other and grow in faith together—that no matter where we go and no matter what we go through, even when we feel afraid or discouraged, as opposed to strong and courageous, the Lord is by our side, nonstop, 24/7, 365 days per year. My wife and I just sat and prayed together for family, friends, and other pressing situations. While praying, I had the image of walking beside Jesus, reaching out and holding part of his robe as we strolled along. For me, such a thought instills the Biblical truth that I need not be afraid or discouraged, that with God beside me, I am far better equipped to be strong and courageous during those rough patches in my life.
Perhaps in your life, right here and right now, you need to reach out and grab hold of Jesus’s robe with the concrete understanding that He is with you wherever you go and through whatever it is that you are going through—good and bad. Life is undeniably better with Jesus in it, and just like a little child grabbing onto their parent’s hand or a piece of their clothing for comfort and support, I’ll be happy to remain at Jesus’s side because he promises to never leave me, nor forsake me, when the world tends to do just that.
I would like to leave you with this lovely verse from Deuteronomy 31:6. It’s a verse I’ll keep on speed dial for the foreseeable future, and one that you might consider for your own reference when you need a strong and courageous faith boost from God’s lips to your ears: “So be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid and do not panic before them. For the Lord your God will personally go ahead of you. He will neither fail you nor abandon you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6 NLT)
Paul Smyth