Take Courage

I came to the realization yesterday that the character quality I most admire in another individual is courage. Courage is “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, or pain without fear: bravery.”

I would encourage you to read Matthew 14:22-31 as it gives you the context to this particular verse. I will attempt to condense it down into a short paragraph. The disciples were sent out on a boat by Jesus who stayed behind and found a quiet place to pray. When Jesus finished praying, he sees the boat is a far distance away. Sometime between 3 and 6AM, Jesus walks out on the water to the boat. The disciples see him and are afraid. That is when Jesus says, “Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.” Then Peter boldly says, Jesus if it’s you tell me to come out on the water. Jesus calls for Peter to come to Him. Peter begins walking, looks around at the waves, becomes afraid, and begins to sink. Jesus reaches out his hand to catch him. Then Jesus remarks to Peter, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

This segment of scripture is jam packed with a lot I could write about today but I will choose to focus on how Jesus encouraged his disciples to have courage and how Peter walked on the water courageously. I absolutely love that Jesus said to his disciples to “take courage.” How many times in your life have you been encouraged to “take courage”? For me it is when we moved our young family over to the Philippines in 2007. We had never lived overseas or lived in a mega city. A couple that were instrumental in us moving there encouraged and challenged our faith and believed in us. It was as if they were saying to us Take courage Wade. Take courage Christine. You’ve got this.

So Peter steps out of the boat and crazily walks on water to Jesus!! Can you imagine what that must have felt like? He was stepping out in faith to Jesus. How is Jesus compelling you today to climb out of the boat and walk on the water? For me, it actually is in my writing the blog daily. Some days I am filled with self doubt and think, I can’t get out the boat today. I don’t think I have anything to offer others. This can paralyze me at times. What challenges keep you from stepping out in faith? I would encourage you to write out todays scripture and put it somewhere where you will see it daily. Let Jesus’s words help you to get out of the boat and take courage. I know you can do it. Write to me today and let me know how Jesus is calling you to TAKE COURAGE.