When
I
was younger, life just seemed to roll along.
Lately, though, it seems that every week brings another
situation that I
do not want to face.
What
do
you do when you find yourself in troubling circumstances? Where do you find the courage
to not only
keep going, but to do so with strength and hope?
In
Acts
3, Peter and John are arrested for preaching about Jesus and for
healing people. After
being imprisoned overnight, threatened
and commanded to stop teaching, they are released. When the church hears what
has happened, they
pray a prayer that not only helps them, but instructs us on how to
deal with
any problem that comes our way.
They
begin
by remembering who is in charge and that nothing is out of
control. “Sovereign Lord,
you made the heavens and the
earth and the sea and everything in them” (Acts 4:24). They go on to note that
everything that has
ever happened, including what was happening to them now, was
because of God’s power
and his will (verses 25-28). They
do
not start with their problems, but rather with a reminder of God’s
position and
power.
Then
they say, “Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your
servants to speak
your word with great boldness” (verse 29). What? If that is me, I am praying for
peace, God’s vengeance,
or for a change of circumstances. Instead,
they pray for boldness and the courage to face the situation that
they are in.
Now,
here is the key: In order to pray the second part (make us bold),
we must
understand and believe the first part (that God is in control).
David understood
that as he went
out to face Goliath. Moses
knew it as
he stood in Pharaoh’s court. Over
and
over, God’s people have faced their trials with courage because
they knew they
were not alone.
I do not know what
challenges you
are up against today, but I do know this; you are in God’s hands. He has not abandoned you or
forsaken you (See
Luke 12:1-32). God’s
strength can carry
you through.
Jesus’ most
frequently given
command was, “Do not be afraid!” I
believe he said this for one reason:
He
knew his father!
Courage does not
start within us. It starts
with the one who is looking after
us.
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