On Courage

Courage, as Noah Webster defined it, is:

Bravery; intrepidity; that quality of mind which enables men to encounter danger and difficulties with firmness, or without fear or depression of spirits; valor; boldness; resolution. It is a constituent part of fortitude; but fortitude implies patience to bear continued suffering.

At the end of that particular definition, Webster thoughtfully placed God's encouragement to Joshua:

Only be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.

-Joshua 1:7

It's often been said that we usually aren't very courageous or brave until the need arises, or at least, only on rare occasions. When we think of bravery or courage, we think of soldiers, firefighters, policemen, and well, in a broader sense, simply those who protect others regularly.

But from what Webster says, courage is also patience to bear continued suffering.

If that's the case, it means that your grandmother who lives daily with her arthritis and back problems is suddenly much braver than we thought. Your parents, who daily deal with financial issues while striving to create a peaceful and happy home environment, are heroes. The man in the wheelchair who smiles as we pass him in the aisles at Wal-Mart has the courage that is necessary to simply live.

I wonder what it would do for our perspective on life if we saw ourselves as courageous?

Another sample of courage is found in the actions in this video. To declare our faith before the world is something all Christians are called upon to do. Yet you never really hear too much about it nowadays. In the times of our Founders, something like this would have been common and given a few words of encouragement. in today's times, though, it meant the sacrifice of potential political alliances, a few votes, and perhaps a small degree of alienation. This man, however, has single-handedly reminded those present that there is a larger purpose in life, and has certainly encouraged others to do the same.