I had a disappointment. It made me think about where I am going in my life, and how tired I am that most everything seems hard. I wanted it—this one thing—to be easy. I was so certain that it would be. A part of this was certainty that I was following what God would have me do. And, admittedly, because I felt I had done a good job and I had paid my dues. I had dreams of everything going my way and smooth sailing down the open road.

But my expectations have been dashed, and I am feeling battered and wobbly. I’m trying to have my own life here, but somehow it seems like I run into block after block.

What do I do now, Lord?

Be brave.

I remembered something I had written about being brave. I laughed at myself and went to re-read what I wrote, which is:

Everything begins with being brave. Maybe some would say it all begins with love, but then we have to be brave to love.
We have to be brave simply to come into this world, and every day after requires bravery to keep going. There are mornings in our lives, especially cold mornings, when we need every ounce of courage to simply get out of bed.

Be brave.

It doesn’t matter how you feel. You don’t have to feel brave to be brave. It is a deliberate choosing of what is the best thing for yourself, as well as for others. Being brave is always the best choice and always then helps others, too.

The words are best said aloud: Be brave.

Invariably a strengthening slips up my spine and into my soul when I whisper the words. They remind me that I do have courage. Courage is an inborn human trait. Yes, it gets bruised and battered and covered over by life’s repeated hard knocks, but it is there and awakens when we reach for it.

That one moment when I say, “Be Brave,” I see myself in a stronger light, and suddenly I see the situation in a more favorable light, too.

Be Brave today, dear heart.

And when tomorrow comes, Be Brave again.

I share this message to myself with you. Be brave today for whatever you are facing large or small.
blessings,
CurtissAnn

Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point. ~ C. S. Lewis

Most every moment along the way takes courage. Courage is like a strain of yogurt culture, if you have some, you can have some more. ~ Ruth Gordon, actress and writer, An Open Book

For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. ~ 2Timothy 1:7 NKJV