Remember this, brothers and sisters, as we move forward into a new week with new challenges: So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. So whether we…
Day 6 of Courage When - Lessons in Courage Review This week, we have taken a look at five different Old Testament figures who showed great courage. We have learned that courage is less about strength than it is about dependence on the Lord, and less about perfect planning than it is about perspective. From the lives of Daniel, Esther, Abraham, Joshua, and David, we see the enormous value of the following…
Day 5 of Courage When - When Enemies Appear Enormous: David 1 Samuel 16:1-13; 17:1-53 Despite the fact that David is now the most widely-known example of heroic courage in the Old Testament, he was, by every account, an unlikely hero. When the Scripture first introduces us to David, he is a young shepherd out tending his father’s sheep. He is called in from the fields by the prophet Samuel who then…
Day 4 of Courage When - When Enemies Appear Everywhere: Joshua Joshua 1:1-9; 21:43-45; Deuteronomy 31:1-8; 32:1-47 Joshua was one of Israel’s greatest and most courageous leaders, but it is important for us to remember that he did not start out as a leader. True leaders never do. In the first part of Joshua’s story, he was a servant, a spy, and a soldier. However, in each of these roles, he relied…
Day 3 of Courage When - When God’s Directions Seem Confusing or Callous: Abraham Genesis 22:1-18; 14:10-20; 18:20-33; Hebrews 11:8-12,17-19 Abraham knew what it was like to do what God said, no matter how absurd it seemed to others. Leave my home and family to follow an invisible God to an unknown land? Okay, God. Wait for You to give me a son when I am 100 years old? Okay, God. Offer…
Day 2 of Courage When - When Your Unexpected Role Requires Unexpected Risk: Esther Esther 4:1-17; 5:1-3; 7:1-6 In many ways, Esther’s life runs parallel to Daniel’s life, which we looked at yesterday. As a young adult, Esther is removed from the home of her Jewish family and sent into the palace of the ruling heathen king. While in the palace, she is honored for her virtue, her beauty, and her honor.…
(Day 1 of Courage When…)When Faithfulness Makes You Fair Game: Daniel Daniel 6:1-28 While praying in his upper room that day, I wonder if Daniel knew his enemies in the Persian administration were lying in wait nearby. I wonder, too, if that would have made any difference to him. When it was announced that King Darius now forbade the worship of any god other than himself, even when the people around Daniel…
Learning to Be Compassionate People Day 6: Scripture Portion to Meditate As we seek to become more compassionate like our Savior, let’s think on these portions of Scripture… “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort…
Learning to Be Compassionate People Day 5: Jesus, Our Ultimate Example “Jesus replied and said, ‘A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he encountered robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead. And by coincidence a priest was going down on that road, and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. Likewise a Levite also, when he came…
Learning to Be Compassionate People Day 4: The Receiving End of Compassion “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17, ESV). Without a doubt, the receiving end of compassion is a beautiful place of blessing. But sometimes it can feel strange. Likely, none of us would say we don’t want…