This is a continuation of our previous weeks…
On this journey along the Yellow Brick Road we came across three types of individuals: The Lion, the Tin man and the Scarecrow. The Lion was looking for courage. The Tin man, a heart. And the Scarecrow, a brain. Courage, wisdom and passion. In the next few weeks we’ll touch on the topics of courage, wisdom and passion and see how the world and self has conformed us into being cowards for godly things, passionate for worldly things and wise in our own eyes.
A Lion without courage? We all know we lack courage in some way or another. I remember reading that humans are not risk takers. Statistically, less than 5% of people live at that tipping point right between the safe and danger zones. And less than 1% are adrenaline junkies, these are the ones that are doing crazy things that make us wonder “why can’t I do that?” The truth of the matter is, when push comes to shove and we find ourselves or our loved ones in a life or death situation courage springs to action.
What makes courage come alive? I believe courage is relative. It springs to life when faced with a particular circumstance. It’s much like saying I would never eat a certain food item. Yet, we say that because we have all the food we want around us. But if we’ve gone a week without food, we may find ourselves eating the very things we were adamant about not eating. Courage works in a similar way. We don’t always act courageously because we don’t see the need to.
The dictionary describes Courage as:
― Nelson Mandela
In the case of the Lion from the Wizard of Oz, he went to the wizard to find courage. As I mentioned in one of the earlier posts, who are the wizards of Oz? We are. Our self. That’s why in the previous weeks we discussed the three main things that influence our decisions. Left to ourselves we will have no courage. We will always weigh out the circumstances; the pros and cons, profit and loss. We will allow experience and rational thought to predict whether to be courageous or not. And chances are we will take the safe path... the one that leads you through the comfort zones of life.
God knows we are fearful. He understands our weaknesses. That’s why He has given us His Spirit. It is the power of God that works in us to be courageous for godly things. That’s part of the transformation that takes place when we place our faith in Christ. Fearful followers of Jesus became warriors for His kingdom. If left to self, we could do NOTHING. But through Christ we can do all things! Friends, when we allow the three sources of information (empirical, rational and a priori data) previously talked about, to dictate a kingdom lifestyle, we will always fall short. That results in never experiencing anything extraordinary through God. The fourth source (revelation) that we talked about last week, which comes through faith is the way we will experience the full power unleashed from God into our lives. Courage comes from God. The ability to do anything great for the kingdom will require faith and trust that He is who He says He is and that He has you no matter what we think of the outcome.
The bottom line… we are usually courageous and will stand up for our damaged egos, how much more should we stand up for our Master, Lord and Savior, Jesus?
Next week we’ll talk about the Tin Man. Stay tuned!
On this journey along the Yellow Brick Road we came across three types of individuals: The Lion, the Tin man and the Scarecrow. The Lion was looking for courage. The Tin man, a heart. And the Scarecrow, a brain. Courage, wisdom and passion. In the next few weeks we’ll touch on the topics of courage, wisdom and passion and see how the world and self has conformed us into being cowards for godly things, passionate for worldly things and wise in our own eyes.
A Lion without courage? We all know we lack courage in some way or another. I remember reading that humans are not risk takers. Statistically, less than 5% of people live at that tipping point right between the safe and danger zones. And less than 1% are adrenaline junkies, these are the ones that are doing crazy things that make us wonder “why can’t I do that?” The truth of the matter is, when push comes to shove and we find ourselves or our loved ones in a life or death situation courage springs to action.
What makes courage come alive? I believe courage is relative. It springs to life when faced with a particular circumstance. It’s much like saying I would never eat a certain food item. Yet, we say that because we have all the food we want around us. But if we’ve gone a week without food, we may find ourselves eating the very things we were adamant about not eating. Courage works in a similar way. We don’t always act courageously because we don’t see the need to.
The dictionary describes Courage as:
- the ability to do something that frightens one.
- mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty.
― Nelson Mandela
In the case of the Lion from the Wizard of Oz, he went to the wizard to find courage. As I mentioned in one of the earlier posts, who are the wizards of Oz? We are. Our self. That’s why in the previous weeks we discussed the three main things that influence our decisions. Left to ourselves we will have no courage. We will always weigh out the circumstances; the pros and cons, profit and loss. We will allow experience and rational thought to predict whether to be courageous or not. And chances are we will take the safe path... the one that leads you through the comfort zones of life.
God knows we are fearful. He understands our weaknesses. That’s why He has given us His Spirit. It is the power of God that works in us to be courageous for godly things. That’s part of the transformation that takes place when we place our faith in Christ. Fearful followers of Jesus became warriors for His kingdom. If left to self, we could do NOTHING. But through Christ we can do all things! Friends, when we allow the three sources of information (empirical, rational and a priori data) previously talked about, to dictate a kingdom lifestyle, we will always fall short. That results in never experiencing anything extraordinary through God. The fourth source (revelation) that we talked about last week, which comes through faith is the way we will experience the full power unleashed from God into our lives. Courage comes from God. The ability to do anything great for the kingdom will require faith and trust that He is who He says He is and that He has you no matter what we think of the outcome.
The bottom line… we are usually courageous and will stand up for our damaged egos, how much more should we stand up for our Master, Lord and Savior, Jesus?
Next week we’ll talk about the Tin Man. Stay tuned!
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