Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
When I was a boy, I was with a friend and we went to an ice cream shop. We were so excited to get some ice cream. I was going to get me a malt. We were absolutely pumped. We walk into this ice cream shop and along the sides of the inside of the ice cream shop, there was, let's just say, a bunch of rough looking individuals.
And my friend whispered under his breath, "Gee, who are those creeps?" Not the nicest thing to say. I know he shouldn't have said it, but as soon as he said that, one of the guys who was rough looking said, "Creeps huh?" I was absolutely scared. Immediately I lost my appetite. I didn't want to order anything. My friend was like, "Hey, what are you going to order?" I'm like, "I don't want to order anything."
Have you ever been scared like that? Have you ever been in a situation where you just immediately have lost courage? Think about it. Where in your life do you need courage? Maybe it's a situation in your personal life. Maybe it's a situation in your job. Maybe it's a situation in your marriage where you know that you need to make decisions that require courage.
We live in a world of fear, and there's all kinds of anxieties that can threaten our ability to have courage. You know, there's a tremendous verse in the Bible. It's 1 Corinthians chapter 16 and verse 13. Paul is writing to correct them, trying to challenge them, and then he says in chapter 16 and verse 13 four amazing ways to have courage: "Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous and be strong."
Four Imperatives for Courage
You know, I love these four great imperatives before us. The first one is to be on guard. You know, at Buckingham Palace, they have the changing of the guard. Why do they do that? Because they want to make sure that whoever is guarding the palace is alert, is understanding the situation. So we're to be on guard. Proverbs chapter 4 and verse 23 says, "Guard your heart, for from it flow the springs of life." And it actually says at the start of that verse, "above all else," showing its priority.
Secondly it says, stand firm in the faith. I grew up in the Midwest. There are several times I would, in the middle of the winter, walk on the ice and there were very slippery points where I could fall. Here it is to stand firm in the faith of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Thirdly, it says to be courageous. This is the idea of have the strength of conviction and the courage to stand upon it—the belief in the Word of God. And then I'm going to live out what that belief really is.
And then finally He says to be strong. You know, I love what Paul says in Ephesians chapter 6. He says, Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 10, "Be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might." And then he talks about all the armor of God following that. And basically what he is saying is you have to be strong in the Lord. And the only way we can defeat Satan, a supernatural foe, is to have the supernatural power of God.
Living Courageously
So as you think about this tremendous passage, it's four quick imperatives that come at you and come at me: be on guard, stand firm in the faith, be courageous and be strong. You know, you and I, we don't do that the way we should. Matter of fact, there's areas where I've been lacking courage and fearful and anxious. In several ways in this verse, all of them, obviously, we've disobeyed. May I encourage you, Jesus Christ was perfect in every single area. So let's receive His forgiveness. Be encouraged because of what He has done, and then live our life in a courageous way.
