Awake SydneySample

Be strong and courageous!

As a child, I remember being afraid of the dark. But funnily enough, whenever my Mum or Dad were with me I had no fear. Whatever it was that made me afraid wasn’t as big or as strong as my Mum or Dad.

We live in times that require courage and strength to stand up for God’s truth and walk in His ways (which is usually against the flow of the world’s ways!). Our young people will need courage and strength to face a world that is hostile to the message of the Gospel. One of the ways we can help them is to continue to point them to the God who is bigger and stronger than what they see around them, and who has all things in His control. We need to not only tell them this, we need to be showing them that we believe it by the way we live and speak.

Three times at the start of Joshua 1, God tells Joshua to be strong and courageous - and on either side of this repeated command are reminders that God is with him and will never leave him, as well as instructions to walk in God’s ways, meditate on God’s law and be careful to do everything written in it. Being strong and courageous is a command - but it comes from knowing who God is (the Almighty and powerful Lord of Hosts who is always with us). It leads us to want to know more of Him and how He calls us to live.

It’s not that Joshua was a powerful or mighty person, but he knew the powerful and mighty God and trusted Him with his life. Tim Keller says, “Courage comes from wanting something more than your own safety. True courage is not ‘I can do it’ - that is self-confidence. It is rather, ‘This is more important than me.’” The secret of courage is looking to God - His power, His glory, His Kingdom come - rather than looking at our situation or ourselves. Let’s keep reminding the young people we work with (and ourselves!) of the mighty God who sent His Son, Jesus, to overcome sin and death - and draw our strength and courage from keeping our eyes fixed on Him.

Prayer: Almighty God, thank you for the promise that you are always with us. Help us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus and draw our strength and courage from loving Him most and looking to Him always.

Murray Norman

General Manager - Presbyterian Youth NSW.

www.pynsw.org.au