Be What?

“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.”

  Deuteronomy 31:6

I’m not a Bible scholar. Far from it. I’ve only read the Bible, cover-to-cover, twice and am a third the way through my third time. But even I can see a theme when it jumps out in front of me.

“Be strong and courageous,” Deuteronomy 31:7

“Be strong and courageous,” Deuteronomy 31:23

 “Be strong and courageous,” Joshua 1:6

 “Be strong and very courageous.” Joshua 1:7

 “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous.” Joshua 1:9 (I think you most certainly have commanded us.)  

“Only be strong and courageous!” Joshua 1:18 (Only? Only be strong and courageous?)

“Be strong and courageous.” Joshua 10:25

“Be strong and courageous.” 1 Chronicles 22:13

But, how Lord, do we remain strong and courageous when we are bombarded with so much in our daily lives – stress, fatigue, bad news, illness, disease, war and threats of war, death? This is how we remain strong and courageous: we look to You, our Lord God, our Rock, our Strength and Courage.

David also said to Solomon his son, “Be strong and courageous, and do the work. Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord God, my God, is with you. He will not fail you or forsake you until all the work for the service of the temple of the Lord is finished.” 1 Chronicles 28:20

And one last time:

“Be strong and courageous.” 2 Chronicles 32:7

(This picture, which of course, God chose for this post and not me, reminds me of a long stretch of strength and courage in my life. I’ve blogged about it before, and I’m sure I will again. One day.)