On year, the theme was
“Brave” – and I knew immediately that this was a word that God was giving to
both me and to my daughters Meagan and Kelsey (who were 7 and 9 at the
time).
Those who know me already
think that I’m pretty brave. I am an
outgoing girl. I can strike up a
conversation with just about anyone. And
I don’t ever mind being in front of a big crowd. Though those things may scare some people, I
actually love doing them!
But I knew that the
bravery that God was calling us to was to stretch us in the things that didn’t
come so easily – the things that were hard for us and where He was asking us to
trust Him, risk and grow.
In 2008, I was in the
middle of an intense season of wrestling with my own disappointment over some
unfulfilled dreams in my life. The
promises of God were very slow in coming and I was beginning to truly believe
that I had not heard God correctly and that God really didn’t have more for me. The horizon of my life looked bleak and gray,
with no hope of new life growing on it.
In the middle of that
place, God asked me to dream again. In
fact, He gave Craig and me a dream that is so big it is beyond our capacity to
do it! It would require believing God
fully and trusting that He would make a way where there seemed to be no way.
For me, it required
bravery to risk extreme disappointment to dream with God again. And though it has been 5 ½ years since that
moment, God has changed us immensely as we are still waiting on Him for
fulfillment. It requires bravery to
dream with and wait on God!
For both
me and the girls, bravery included dealing with relational issues. It takes
courage to rightly respond when facing rejection and hurt – or to go back and
ask for forgiveness when we are the ones who hurt someone else.
It
requires bravery to speak truth to someone, even when it comes at a great
personal cost.
One of
the ultimate acts of bravery is to allow God to work forgiveness in our hearts
towards those who have hurt us. That is a work that can definitely take time!
But more
often than not, a lifestyle of bravery has been forged in mundane, everyday
choices:
*Will I be brave enough to say no to my immediate
gratification and yes to wise
stewardship of my money?
*Will I be brave enough to use my time well, making time
for the most important
things like spending time with the Lord?
*Will I be brave to believe God is who He says He is no
matter what circumstances
I am facing in my life?
As my girls and I have
walked this journey together, I am amazed at the courage and strength God has
worked in us. In Him, we are brave – not
because of our own strength, but because of the goodness of God to lead us out
beyond our comfort zone.
After all, God never calls
us to do anything that He does not empower us to do. . .so the Lord girls have
answered the call to bravery. And He
wants to raise up a generation of men and women, boys and girls, who are
willing to bravely bring the Kingdom
of God here on
earth. Let’s say yes to that call!
"Remember that I commanded you to be strong and brave. Don't be afraid, because the Lord your God will be with you everywhere you go." Joshua 1:9
"Remember that I commanded you to be strong and brave. Don't be afraid, because the Lord your God will be with you everywhere you go." Joshua 1:9
