bravery – The Will to Wake Up

For Such a Time as This

Queen Esther made the choice to trust God and fulfill her purpose, despite her fear. How have you struggled to be courageous?

I’ve often heard people make the excuse “I can’t do this because I’m not a brave person”, like bravery is a personality trait or something. No, it is not. I believe that anyone can be brave. Yes, including you.

Fear is the enemy’s favorite weapon against us. He uses it to trick us into not fulfilling our purposes. God knows that we need encouragement to be brave, which is why He reminds us over 300 times in the Bible to not be afraid. So, if you’re trying to figure out what God wants you to do every day, it’s to get rid of fear!

But the thing is, being brave doesn’t mean we aren’t afraid. We can only be brave when we overcome something we’re afraid of; when we take action despite our fear.

My very favorite female Bible character is Esther. What’s not to love? As a kid, we learned in Sunday school about how brave, devoted, and loyal she was. She’s the model for what a young woman should be, right?

Well, what actually makes me appreciate her even more is that she’s more human than we often make her out to be. Her initial response to her cousin Mordecai’s request for her to stand up for her people, to use her power and position in the best way possible, was not one of eagerness and bravery. She didn’t immediately say, “Yes, I absolutely will risk my life for you all!”

No, she actually told him that she couldn’t do what he requested because she would put her own life in danger. She allowed her fears to get the best of her.

But thankfully, Mordecai didn’t accept that response. He pushed her to step out of her comfort zone in order to fulfill God’s purpose for her, which is what we should do for our loved ones too. He reminded her that she was created for just a time as this.

Even with these words, Esther didn’t immediately take action. She needed guidance from God, more than usual, so she asked Mordecai to tell all their people to fast and pray for her. She agreed to go before the king, but that threat of dying was still in the back of her mind. That fear wasn’t gone, which was apparent in her next course of action.

She came before the king, and instead of bringing up the issue right away, she asked him and Hamaan (the one trying to kill all the Jews) to come to a feast she prepared. Perhaps this was all a part of her plan, or perhaps she was too nervous to tell him what she really wanted right away. Likely it was a little of both. I’m sure we’ve all had that moment where we’ve created a plan of action when trying to do something we’re afraid of doing in order to feel more in control. Making a plan is totally fine as long as we seek God’s wisdom while making it.

It took two feasts before Esther got up the courage to ask the king to spare her people. She did it afraid. She did it after not wanting to earlier. She second-guessed herself and had to create a plan of action before doing what God wanted her to do.

But she still did it and saved her people. She still fulfilled her purpose. She wasn’t any less brave for doing it afraid. Because essentially, she did it.

What’s something God’s calling you to do today? Is fear holding you back from fulfilling your purpose? Remember, nothing is impossible for you when God is your strength. You are put in this situation for just a time as this and you have the same God-given power and abilities Esther received to do what you need to do.

Now’s the time to do it.

For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to your royal position for such a time as this?
Esther 4:14

But He said, “The things that are impossible with people are possible with God.”
Luke 18:27

Hope for the Lows in Life

Are you going through a hard time right now? Hopefully my story can encourage you.

To be honest, I’ve been really discouraged lately.

I know, shocking, coming from a person who runs an encouragement blog. But here’s the thing, so often we like to share our stories of how we struggled in the past and got through it, by God’s grace. But we never like to admit that we’re currently going through a rough time.

And let’s be real, ever since last March, we’ve all been through a series of difficulties. Especially for those of us who hate change. Or are learning to embrace it. (Emphasis on learning!)

There are a lot of Christian writers and singers I look up to. And they are amazing, God-filled people. I have benefitted from their words so much. But sometimes, it’s hard because I see them and I wonder why I’m still stuck on a rollercoaster in my faith journey while they seem to have figured it all out. (I’m sure they don’t have it all figured out, but sometimes it feels like they do!)

I’m definitely not as well-known or experienced as the people I admire, but I want to still be open with you about the things I go through. I want you to remember that you are not alone in your struggles. I’m still figuring things out too. One of the major things that’s been burdening me is actually my writing.

I’ve always wanted to be a writer. When I was a kid, I filled up little books with all my stories and decorated them with stickers. As I’ve gotten older, writing has become cathartic for me. When I write, all my problems seem to have meaning, like they happened so that I can share my story. It’s the fuel to my (story’s) fire. When I write, I finally feel like I have a purpose.

So you can imagine the heartbreak of reading one negative review after another by my writing professor. I know I can be too thin-skinned, but it still hurts. Based on her comments, I’d be a better editor than an actual writer.

I suppose you could say I feel stuck. I feel like the things that used to define me are disintegrating around me. And maybe that’s to remind me to allow God to define me instead of activities or talents. I’m in a time of my life where change is on the horizon and I know I must let go of certain things in this season. Some relationships, some dreams.

But the thing is, I know that God gave me a passion for writing. As I debated being an English major, a Theology major, or a Psychology major, I searched my Bible for answers. And I know I heard God’s voice tell me to pursue English.

But some days, it just seems easier to give up.

I keep reminding myself of a visual I saw during a Bible study, where the author said that our journey with God isn’t going to be one straight vertical line, or even a staircase. It’s going to be full of ups and downs and that’s perfectly normal.

But during these times that feel neverending, full of discouragement, extremely low…it’s hard to remember that there’s another turnaround up ahead that’s going to be better.

One time, when I was feeling similarly, I kept seeing verses or hearing messages from people with the three word phrase “Don’t give up”. I even saw a book at the store titled that and I immediately bought it, knowing it was a sign from God. God places verses, people, and sometimes even social media posts in our path so that we can keep moving forward when the enemy tries holding us back. He doesn’t want us to fulfill our purposes, and that’s why he does everything he can to make us feel discouraged.

That’s why my main goal in life is to encourage people through the words God gives me. We have to stand together to fight against the enemy. We can’t do this alone.

I’m sure you have many things to do today, so I won’t keep you much longer. I’ll just leave you with one final story.

At that same Bible study, where I previously mentioned the imagery of our journey with God, I was struggling as the leader. I had the “great idea” of bringing together four people who had nothing in common to try to grow together in God’s word. At first, I felt like I was failing. The enemy whispered in my ear, “Just give up. Everyone knows you tried, but you just couldn’t do it.”

But I kept going, in part thanks to the people in my group who encouraged me by continuing to show up, and thanks to mentors speaking God’s truth to me.

And you know what? Over a year later, with many necessary changes, my Bible study has flourished into a close-knit group where we’ve been able to share vulnerably, learn from each other, and grow closer to God. Starting that Bible study was one of the toughest tests of my perseverance so far. No one would’ve blamed me if I had given up. (Well, except for me!) But I didn’t. I didn’t give up.

And I won’t give up now.

I know I’m not the only one feeling discouraged today. You might be too, or a loved one is. But you know what? We are only letting the enemy win every time we believe one of his lies about us. When we are walking in line with God’s will, nothing can stop us. Don’t lose hope. Don’t give up. ❤

But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded.
2 Chronicles 15:7

You intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives.
Genesis 50:20

And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.
Hebrews 11:6

For no word from God will ever fail.
Luke 1:37

And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.
Romans 8:28

After the Prayer

Prayer is a good first step, but when is it time to take action?

Prayer is the most important spiritual practice you can take part in. However, it can be misused in a way that actually harms you. Often, we say we’ll pray about something, and that’s wonderful. But then we can use it as an excuse to not take action. If things don’t happen related to the issue, we blame God instead of ourselves.

I know that I’ve done this before. If I’m afraid, I’ll just tell myself that God will handle it for me once I pray. Of course God should be a source of comfort and peace. Yet, He does not want us to sit idly by and not do the work to make progress.

I know this might be a tough love moment, but in the end, your relationship with God will strengthen if you are willing to do more than pray.

Instead of praying something specific, pray that God’s will can be done and that God will give you the strength to do the hard thing. We should ultimately want God’s will to be done because, as I talked about in my most recent post, we can either choose to accept what’s happening and trust God or begrudging stomp our feet and refuse to move forward in life. Then we miss out on the many blessings God has in store for us.

Today, reflect on areas of your life where you may not be putting in the work. Perhaps the conflict could be resolved through you talking to someone. Perhaps you are actually being called to give up something in order to help someone else. Perhaps you are meant to take that risk you’ve been worrying about.

There are certainly situations in which we simply can’t do anything but pray. And that’s okay. But just take the time to figure out whether God is calling you to take action.

Ultimately, it is crucial to pray in order to strengthen our relationship with God and to have peace about situations. But nothing can be done if we aren’t willing to follow God’s call on our lives.

You can certainly pray for strength, perseverance, and clarity. That’s a wonderful thing to do. But after that, just go for it! You can do this, I believe in you. And most of all, God is with you, so you have nothing to be afraid of ❤

If God is for us, who can be against us?
Romans 8:31