e157 Pray for Divine Courage from Our Creator (amp up your witness)

This is Faith to Witness 99, motivating us to hear God and share the Shepherd.

Season 3 Episode 157 Pray for Divine Courage from Our Creator (amp up your witness)

Here’s the gist, human. September brought a bridge too far, only to illuminate a heaven so close. God did the work through Charlie Kirk in 31 years. To inspire the world to rise up. Today I am talking about divine courage from our Creator. The kind of courage that sustains and enables us to love like Christ. We look at why true courage is inseparable from God’s presence and promise. Taken to heart, this will amp up our witness. Join us. E157. Thanks for listening.

 I knew I would find you here, on the narrow road with Jesus. Before I take us to where we left it at the end of Season 2, let’s weigh in on how we are feeling right now.

I’m Kathryn Bise, your host.

A lifetime happened in September. For you, for me, for us. I haven’t really addressed life on this podcast from a political or even much of a cultural context. But with this season launch, I am spiritually prompted to address our need for courage. I would never have thought that during this reflection period between Season 2 and Season 3, that the motivation to witness, to go find the one would rise to revival proportion.

First, how did we leave Season 2? Well, we celebrated the redemption of a young woman, and that there is no other time, no other place that I hear Jesus more clearly, feel him more deeply than when I witness someone coming to Christ, confessing to Christ, giving to Christ the only thing we have to give. Our life.

Romans 10:9-10

 

9 If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.

 

When you witness Romans 10:9, someone confessing with their mouth, and believing in their heart, it elevates you. It is a transcendent experience. We entered our September time of reflection with how God supercharges our witness.

1. He gives us clarity on exactly where a person is in relation to Jesus and to God through conversations with them. When we go finding we are helping someone find that threshold when giving it all to Jesus is coming home to what we were made for. It takes humility and courage to meet this moment.

2. He gives us the wisdom to share the specific moment when our own personal seeking became salvation. Sharing the WHY of our threshold is the most powerful response to someone who is moving toward that moment.

3. He gives us manifest joy, a shared joy that takes our relationship with a new believer into the storm on the other side, to keep the bond and a relationship that is based on reciprocating our daily witness to each other.

We affirmed that when we witness, we are 100% in God’s will.

Jesus is Not an Ideology. He is a Savior.

And today, in the midst of the grieving believers have shared, it seems like a bridge too far. But God did the work through Charlie Kirk in 31 years. To inspire the world to rise up to his divine call.

How do we move forward within this divine inspiration so many of us have experienced out of the tragedy of Charlie Kirk’s assassination? There is a mine field of divisive actions and counter reactions happening right now. The voices that have enduring promise are those coming from individuals who are affirming that they need to have a stronger voice, show the Jesus redemption banner, and help open their witness to the world. For the past few weeks courage has been trending on social media, and this brings us to what needs to happen next.

Because Jesus is not a trend.

When the thrill of going bold on social media begins to recede, to fade, to flounder, we will each be left with God’s word, a prayer life, and the need for daily courage to speak up, speak out, and help someone see Jesus.

Because Jesus is not an ideology. Jesus is a Savior.

We are witnessing to others about our relationship with him, not what someone should believe about him. That may sound wrong, but telling someone what they should believe is a dead-end approach. A person has to come to believing from a personal, intimate place that only Jesus can give access to.

So, we focus our witness dialogue by shining a light on what our relationship with Jesus is.

Today, I am all about tapping into the kind of encouragement, divine courage that comes from a source beyond us, and who God told to have courage in circumstances with ridiculous odds.

How to pray for courage, embrace this virtue on a consistent, daily basis. To welcome the situations God puts us in that require the clarity that courage brings. About what matters. Who we are. And who we do it for.

Because courage always gives you the next step. The next conversation with the person in front of you.

The only way we can keep the daily affirmations going is by drawing on God’s nature.

How Does Inspiration Take Root Over Time?

Today I speak primarily from a recent study in Strong’s concordance, and I encourage you to take a look for yourself. The link is in show notes.

I have to say Strong’s concordance is my daily go-to for a deeper understanding of God’s Word. It seems so simple to seek the meanings of words and meditate on them in the context of what God has to say to us. Who was this man? James Strong was an American biblical scholar and professor of exegetical theology. He directed the creation of Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. Published in 1890, it is as an index of every word in the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible, assigning unique numbers to Hebrew and Greek words. 35 years in the making. A life’s work. Before computers. If you can imagine that.

I turned to this resource with one word in mind: courage.

Because this is where we are. Young people across the nation are getting involved in Turning Point USA, and all generations are drawing from this energy and echoing commitment to being bold in Christ. If you spend any amount of time online you have seen it. Some of you have posted about it.

But how does this inspiration take root over time? Because about now, our human nature begins to crack the window to let a little distraction in, and the power of what we have seen taking hold of our country begins to feel less personal, less applicable to the life we live every day.

The enemy is looking for ways to show us that God and the Heaven we are living toward is impractical, unreliable, unpredictable, and impossible to sustain on this earth. All he needs is that crack in the window.

To get inside and mess with our motivation.

I can also easily envision all the people who are returning to church or going for the first time, and that many are finding an enduring support structure of believers, and activities, a new commitment to God’s word, more consistent prayer that is taking them to new spiritual heights.

Welcome.

I see your journey. I support your journey. And I want to be real about it. There is no amount of human endeavor that will sustain it. There isn’t anything enduring, lasting, eternal about our human nature that isn’t tethered to our Creator.

In other words, the enduring qualities about our human nature come from God. And his glory.

Courage From Our Creator

God gives us a lifetime of enduring qualities. Today I am talking about courage from our Creator.

The world’s view is this: Demonstrating courage through our own self-sufficiency is the goal. If we succumb, we can always hear worldly bravado chanting throughout our lives, with crowds of people claiming independence and the power to rule our own lives.

But it just doesn’t last. We are not self-sufficient. We are not sovereign.

So, I want to look at the Hebrew word for courage in its verb form. It bears the kind of fruit that will invigorate your perspective on what “being courageous” in the Lord is, and how we move forward with this unsolicited September inspiration borne out of such a gut-wrenching tragedy.

The Hebrew word for courage is amets (ah-MAYTS): To be strong, to be courageous, to be firm, to strengthen

Also, steadfastly minded, fortify, harden, prevail. Strong’s Topical Lexicon on courage conveys the idea of becoming firm, resolute, or emboldened. It depicts inner fortitude granted or commanded by God and then expressed in decisive action. Whether applied to leaders, armies, craftsmen, women in daily labor, or the fearful remnant of Israel, it consistently joins moral bravery with confident trust in the LORD’s presence.

From the Jordan to the exile, the imperative “be strong” frames transitional moments for covenant leadership. Four times in Deuteronomy 31 and another four in Joshua 1, Moses and the LORD charge Joshua:

For example,

Deuteronomy 31:6

 

Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.

 

Then Moses turns and tells Joshua to do the same in front of the Israeli nation. And that God would go before him.

Then God tells Joshua directly:

Joshua 1:9

 

Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.

 

In each setting strength is not self-generated but grounded in the promise “for the LORD your God is with you” (Joshua 1:9). Strong goes on to note the same exhortation resurfaces for Hezekiah before Assyria (2 Chronicles 32:7) and for returning exiles who rebuild the temple (Zechariah 8:9, 13).

Thus, God’s word links successive generations to the same divine resource.

We are Grounded in Covenant Promises

Stick with me with on Strong’s analysis because this is where we get to the stuff that travels well in our soul, how he synthesizes the theological truth of it, and reconciles courage to God’s nature.

Strong’s theological synthesis goes like this:

1. True courage is inseparable from God’s presence and promise.
2. Strength is both commanded and bestowed; obedience opens the channel for divine enabling.
3. The same grace fortifies leaders, laborers, warriors, exiles, and the afflicted.
4. Eschatological* passages anticipate a final, God-given strengthening of His people, ultimately fulfilled in Christ who strengthens every believer (compare Ephesians 6:10).

*relating to death, judgment, and the final destiny of the soul and of humankind.

So, what is he saying?

Divine courage is inseparable from God.

Divine enabling is activated upon our obedience.

His grace fortifies every believer, regardless of earthly stature.

The final destiny of the soul abides in the strength of our Savior.

About God’s presence for a minute. God is not interested in going anywhere but deeper into our hearts. To help us pray for courage, embrace courage on a consistent, daily basis. To embolden us to welcome the situations God puts us in that yield divine clarity. Only courage brings us to decisive action.

Strong goes on to say: “calls to courage are grounded in covenant promises, not mere optimism.” Saying we are courageous, doesn’t make it so. Wishing for, hoping for the best possible outcome doesn’t make it so. God does.

The beauty of Strong’s work here is his gathering together what he calls “a consistent biblical portrait.”

He says, “God imparts inner firmness that enables His people to obey, to persevere in trial, to accomplish His work, and to face every adversary with holy boldness.”

Our boldness comes from what he promised his chosen people, all believers in Christ, and his faithfulness to his promises. When he tells us to be strong and courageous it is a command for obedience so he can bestow it.

Courage is activated by our obedience. God divinely enables us to move.

Courage is Activated by Our Obedience

2 Timothy 1:7

7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline.

Isaiah 43:10-11

10 “You are my witnesses,” declares the Lord,

    “and my servant whom I have chosen,

so that you may know and believe me

    and understand that I am he.

Before me no god was formed,

    nor will there be one after me.

11 I, even I, am the Lord,

    and apart from me there is no savior.

 

And,

Psalm 94:18-19

 

18 When I said, “My foot is slipping,”

    your unfailing love, Lord, supported me.

19 When anxiety was great within me,

    your consolation brought me joy.

 

Through Paul, Isaiah, and David we are assured of God’s presence and the sovereign power of his nature.

Courage to Love In Christ

I have an affirmation to share, in the form of a short, personal prayer, called Hold Me Close. It is something short that you can say to affirm the presence and power of God for your day. It’s available in show notes.

Let’s go to God for courage.

Hold Me Close

Hold me close to your covenant love, God

Pull me deep into your promises

Help me hear your command

Enable me to obey.

Fortify me for my Jericho moments, Jesus

Hold my heart strong and steadfast for the 99

Give me inner firmness to go find the one who is lost

Fill me with holy boldness for the end times, through your victory.

In the courageous name of Jesus. Amen.

It’s good to be back, human. To connect with you, whether you are a nonbeliever, a believer or someone who lives somewhere in-between. If you want a one-on-one conversation, reach out to me at deeperwater@kathrynbise.com.

I want to live within the courage of our Christ.

I want to share his presence in my life.

Because Jesus is not an ideology. He is my Savior.

I am so grateful for you. Be strong and courageous.

Share this with someone in your life. Jesus has prepared the way.