Courageous Courage
A compilation
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Sometimes in our lives we are called to make big decisions. At such moments, we can be overcome by the fear of failure, humiliation, poverty, and pain. When this happens, we need to remember that courage does not consist in the elimination of fear, but in the management of it. No one who has shown exceptional courage has been without fear. They have simply learned how to master it well. Joshua needed to be brave when crossing the borders into the Promised Land, a place where giants roamed.
God didn’t remove Joshua’s fears. He spoke a word that enabled Joshua to conquer his fears. So often the real giants are not in the land, they are in our hearts. God’s Word is simple: “I am with you every step of the way.” If we are walking in His will, He is with us. If He is with us, who can stand against us? Whatever the big decision is in your life right now, be brave. Have courage. Master your fear through the application of God’s magnificent promises.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous! Do not be terrified or dismayed (intimidated), for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified … for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you” (Deuteronomy 31:6).—Mark Stibbe1
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Today I look back at my childhood worries with amusement. I realize now that I’ve always felt lacking in courage. The other day, however, I happened to look up the definition of courage when writing an article. “Courage” originated from the French word cœur for heart. One etymology site says that the original French word meant “‘heart, innermost feelings, temper.’ In middle English [it was] used broadly for ‘what is [on] one’s mind or thoughts,’ hence ‘bravery,’ but also [meaning] ‘wrath, pride, confidence, lustiness,’ or any sort of inclination.”2 Today, courage is defined as “mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.”3
In the Bible there are countless stories of men and women who did courageous things. Hebrews 11 lists many of these courageous folk. “What more can I say? I would run out of time if I told you about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets. Through faith they conquered kingdoms, brought about justice, realized promises, shut the mouths of lions, put out raging fires, escaped from the edge of the sword, found strength in weakness, were mighty in war, and routed foreign armies” (Hebrews 11:32–34).
Looking at the brave men listed in this chapter, the origins of the word “courage” take on greater meaning—their hearts were in the right place. These men had something wonderful in common—the source of their courage.
We will all go through times that will be emotionally or mentally difficult and that will require moral courage—the will to do what we know is right. And I think that what we’ll do in such a time can be traced to something very simple. I think it will be what we’ve stored up in our heart that will determine the strength of our courage.
Everyone loves a good hero story. But in real life, you don’t get to decide whether you’ll have the opportunity for a huge heroic moment—if you get to rescue someone, or somehow or another save the day—but you do control what you put in your heart. That’s how you can be prepared for these larger-than-life moments, as well as those everyday moments that require courage.—Roald Watterson
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When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.—Acts 4:13
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In the Bible, courage is also called “good cheer” as in Mark 6:50 when Jesus gave the command to the disciples who saw Him walking on the water of the Sea of Galilee and coming toward them. The Greek word translated “courage” and “good cheer” means literally “boldness and confidence.” In the Bible, courage is the opposite of fear. When God commands us to fear not, to be of good cheer, and to have courage, He is always commanding against fear, which is the opposite of courage.
But God doesn’t simply command courage with no reason behind it. In nearly every incident where God says “fear not,” there follows a reason to have courage, and that reason is God Himself, His nature and His perfect plans. … In each incident, we see God commanding courage, not because it is natural for man to be brave and courageous, but because, when God is protecting and guiding us, we can have courage because we are confident in Him. …
[Courage] is the result of understanding the foreknowledge and sovereignty of God, whose plans and purposes cannot be thwarted and whose omnipotence makes every circumstance of life subservient to His will.—GotQuestions.org4
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Inaction breeds doubt and fear. Action breeds confidence and courage. If you want to conquer fear, do not sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.—Dale Carnegie
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You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop and look fear in the face. … You must do the thing you think you cannot do.—Eleanor Roosevelt
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Waiting to develop courage is just another form of procrastination. The most successful people take action while they’re afraid!—Author unknown
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One wet and miserable morning in Ohio, Ray Blankenship was making breakfast when he looked out the window onto the open stormwater drain that ran alongside his house. What he saw terrified him—a small girl being swept down the drain. He also knew that further downstream, the ditch disappeared with a roar underneath the road.
Ray ran out the door and raced along the ditch, trying to get ahead of the little girl. Then he hurled himself into the deep, churning water. He surfaced and was able to grab the child’s arm. They tumbled end over end.
Within about one meter of the drain going under the road, Ray’s free hand felt something protruding from one bank. He grabbed ahold and held on for dear life. “If I can just hang on until help comes,” he thought. But he did better than that.
By the time fire-department rescuers arrived, Ray had pulled the girl to safety. Both were treated for shock. On April 12, 1989, Ray Blankenship was awarded the US Coast Guard’s Silver Lifesaving Medal. The award is fitting, Ray Blankenship was at even greater risk to himself than most people knew. You see, Ray can’t swim.—Reported in Los Angeles Times Syndicate
Published on Anchor April 2025. Read by Jon Marc. Music by Michael Dooley.
1 Mark Stibbe, God’s Word for Every Need (Destiny Image Publishers, 2017).
2 Online Etymology Dictionary, s.v., “courage (n),” http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=courage
3 Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, s.v. “courage,” http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/courage?show=0andt=1305771775
4 GotQuestions, “What does the Bible say about courage?” January 4, 2022, https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-courage.html
