Be Strong & Courageous | AllWorship.com

This is not the kind of ‘strong’ God meant.

Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Josh 1:7-9 NIV)

God told Joshua to be strong and courageous. More than that, He COMMANDED Joshua to be so–neither a suggestion nor a guideline but a command. Neither feeling nor attitude would suffice here. He commanded Joshua to BE strong and courageous.

If we asked people today if they are strong, most would begin to speak of their feelings. For the kind of ‘strong’ God requires, feelings are irrelevant. The same goes for ‘courageous’. In this context, ‘strong’ and ‘courageous’ are decisions.

If this were not so, God would not have commanded Joshua. He would have encouraged Joshua to be strong and courageous. He would have hoped Joshua would be so. God did none of that; He commanded Joshua to be so.

The same goes for the command to not be afraid or discouraged. We typically think of fear as a feeling. God implies otherwise in this passage. I am not suggesting that we do not feel fear. Of course, we do; it is an emotion and part of our human nature.

What then did God mean when He knows we will at times feel fear, be discouraged, be weak, and be afraid? Are we expected to lie about it to God? Of course not! He meant that we must overcome what we feel in order to be truly strong, courageous, unafraid, and not discouraged.

It is this simple. And how can we do this? There is only one way I know:

We must trust God more than we trust what we see and feel. We must be confident of His character, integrity, and ways, and believe that He will always be so regardless of what our circumstances look like.

Then, we must choose how we will respond when fear “knocks on the door” of our lives. Easy to do? No. Necessary? Yes, absolutely necessary … if we hope to fulfill what God has for us to do–especially in these times in which we now live. Necessary too if we hope to survive, IMHO.

To fulfill God’s command, you must decide in advance what you will do. Then, you must override your feelings and do what you have decided. It is not about the outcome; it is about the decision.

The man in the image above has been working out for a long time. Of this, we can be certain because that kind of muscle cannot be built any other way. It is the same for us in spiritual things. Spiritual strength must be developed over time and with determination. There are no shortcuts, just as in building physical strength.

The next time someone asks you if you are strong, do not check your feelings. Check your decision. You are strong if you decide to be and if you refuse to let anyone or anything compromise your decision. You can be unafraid and set in your spirit even while you feel fear in your emotions. And yes, both can be present at the same time.

And how can you build the ability to stand regardless of your circumstances? You do this by doing the rest of what God commanded Joshua in today’s passage. You read Scripture, meditate on it, and obey what is written. Study God’s promises and choose to believe that He will fulfill every one.

That is the way it is done, and in this too there is no other way. God asks, “Have not I commanded you?” Then He follows these commands with, “Only then will you succeed.” It is the same today as then.

Be strong, courageous, unafraid, unmoved, and refuse to be discouraged. You can do this. Even when you do not feel it, choose to BE it.