It takes a lot of courage, to put things in God’s hands,
To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hopes, our plans.
To follow where God leads us and make His will our own.
But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone!
— Anonymous
Courage and Foolishness: The difference between the two is really not that great. What is courage to some is foolishness to others.
Do you remember the story of David and Goliath? David’s the kid with a few smooth stones and an awesome sling shot who nailed the warrior giant, Goliath, with a rock between the eyes. We say David has great courage because we know the ending of the story: Goliath struts, David lets fly the stone, Goliath falls, David wins! Break out the champagne and celebrate! But, what would you have felt, had you actually been there before the battle began?
“It takes a lot of courage to put things in God’s hands.”
A 9 foot monster built like a tank with armor weighing over 200 pounds taunts you to come and fight. Day after day for forty days you watch this ugly brute march up to your camp and insult you and your God. His threats and taunts produce the desired result: fear. You want to do something. You want to stand up to this threat. You want to do what is right but instead, you watch and wait.
“To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hope, our plans.”
Who are the giants in your life? We all have them you know. It may be a person, or a pressure on the job, or a problem in the family, but to you it is a giant. And this giant does not come out once and then go away. It comes relentlessly morning and evening, day after day, hammering at your willpower and challenging your senses.
How do you react? Do you run? Do you give-in? Do you compromise? You want to react with courage, but then you stop and think, “Who am I to deal with a problem this big? Why should I be different from everyone else?” This isn’t courage. It’s foolishness.
“To follow where God leads us and make His will our own.”
All odds were against David, but he was not impressed or intimidated by Goliath. David always seemed to keep in mind that no matter how big the giants may be in our life, God is always greater. We can all say that, but when the chips were down, David really believed it and trusted in God to see him through. Can you? Is your faith in God big enough?
“But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone!”
The courage of David is not found in slingshots vs. armor or brains vs. brawn. There is no guarantee that a David will always defeat Goliath. Rather it is David’s willingness to do what is right, wherever that leads and whatever the consequences.
Giants loom and we allow ourselves to be intimidated. We forget to pray; to believe. We forget to trust. David walks up to Goliath and says, “All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s.” God honors that kind of courage. God will honor you when you truly see that even a giant like Goliath is a dwarf standing next to God.
It takes a lot of courage to put things in God’s hands.
To give ourselves completely, our lives, our hope, our plans.
To follow where God leads us and make His will our own.
But all it takes is foolishness, to go the way alone!