“You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” — Winnie The Pooh (A.A. Milne)
Living life in this world, we can find a lot of things that cause us fear. Sometimes it takes bravery just to get out of bed and face another day. But God encourages us to be brave in the face of those dangers, temptations, and difficulties because He's right there with us (Isaiah 41:13; Luke 12:7; Revelation 2:10). Whenever God has asked someone to be brave, it is usually when the situation seems impossible to handle. He knows how tender our courage can be and how often we can feel overwhelmed (Psalm 103:14), so when God asks us to be brave, He means to carry us through. We don't need to go it alone.
“For I am the Lord your God who takes hold of your right hand and says to you, Do not fear; I will help you." —Isaiah 41:13
The Bible tells us that we have no reason to fear (Isaiah 41:10; 43:5; Luke 12:7). In fact, "do not be afraid" is repeated 365 times in the Bible! That doesn't mean it's wrong to ever feel fear, but it does mean that we should not allow fear to control our decisions.
God has given us lots of reasons we can be confident and brave in scary situations, and we can rest in these biblical principles:
After Moses died, God chose Joshua to take over leading the Israelites. To say Joshua was a bit frightened to fill such big sandals would be a severe understatement. He was the new leader of Israel, responsible for protecting the nation and leading them through dangerous territory.
Just read Joshua 1:1-9 to see how many times God had to reassure Joshua to be "strong and courageous" as he moved forward with the plan to enter the long-awaited Promised Land and drive out the pagan inhabitants.
Joshua found it in him to be brave because God promised He would be there to help every step of the way and fight the battle for them (Exodus 14:14; Deuteronomy 1:30). Joshua trusted God's Word—even though he had no other way to assure their survival.
When we feel unsure about moving forward, we can rest assured that God will carry us through—even if we can't see how He possibly could (Proverbs 3:5-6).
David had seen God working in his life when he was younger, so he had confidence and bravery as he faced challenges in the future (1 Samuel 17:12-15). When David considered fighting the giant Goliath, he bravely accepted the task because God had already delivered him from lions and bears (1 Samuel 17:37). Just as God saved him from the paw of the lion and the bear, David knew God would also deliver him from Goliath.
If you have experienced God's protection, support, or supernatural courage in the past, then you can look back at those times to help bolster your courage and help you to be brave today. When we know that God will continue to deliver us and keep us safe, we can move forward bravely.
"What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?" —Romans 8:31
God’s perfect plans will never fail—EVER. God is sovereign over all things so no matter what happens, we can be assured that He is in control. God's love for us will never stop, and He will always orchestrate for the "good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28). Even though life can get out of control, scary, and hectic, God is always paying attention and in complete power (Isaiah 46:9-11). God can and does work out bad things for good.
Bravery isn't about having an arrogant, daring attitude or never being afraid of anything. The world can certainly be a scary place, so it's impossible to never feel fear. Bravery is about recognizing your fear, then moving forward anyway. And that takes an enormous amount of mental and moral strength!
As Christians, we can be brave because we know God is always with us and has been with us through past experiences and by trusting in His unfailing plans. Choosing to follow Christ—even in scary situations—marks true bravery. God believes in your ability to be brave, and we believe in you too.
Bravery isn't about having an arrogant, daring attitude. Being brave doesn't mean that we're never fearful. Bravery is about recognizing your fear, then moving forward anyway. And that takes an enormous amount of mental and moral strength! The Bible tells us that we can be brave because God is always with us (Joshua 1:9) and always has been (1 Samuel 17:12-15; 37). We can trust that God’s sovereign purposes and plans will never fail (Isaiah 46:9-11; Romans 8:28). Be brave by relying on, trusting, and obeying God. We're all afraid at times, but we can be brave because of God's promises.
Vivian loves learning, studying the Word of God, and helping others in their walk with Christ. She is dedicated to helping people learn more about Jesus and is ready to help in any way she can. Her favorite things to do are spending time with her family and friends, cooking, drawing, and spending time outside. When she is not writing, you can find her soaking up the sunshine or going on an adventure.
