To Have a Courageous Faith

2 Chronicles 17 tells the story of Jehoshaphat, how he fortified the cities of Judah, set garrisons in the land and, most importantly, that "his heart was courageous in the ways of the Lord" (17:6).  This description stuck with me as I read the other books of this week's selection.  I wondered what the section in Deuteronomy had to say about being courageous in the ways of the Lord.  The answer wasn't immediate; upon a first review, chapters 13-17 appeared to contain straightforward directives: don't serve other gods (Deuteronomy 13), watch what you eat (14), honor God with tithing (14), participate in the Sabbatical Year (15), celebrate the Passover and Feasts (16), and don't pervert justice (16).  Commands like these don't necessarily translate into courageous acts.  Yet after closer review, I could see how a heart does need to be courageous in these ways of the Lord.  For example, in order to not serve other gods, chapter 13 actually discusses walking away from an authority figure (a prophet who is misleading), and it speaks of going against family who would lead one astray. A person can only imagine the kind of courage this might take, to ignore authority or to challenge one's family.  Similarly, when the text discusses the Sabbatical Year and notes that the reader is to "give freely" assisting those who become poor (15:10), a certain amount of courage is required here too.  To give freely means one has to trust that there is and will be enough to be shared.

A call for courage is present in the letter of 1 John as well.  Repeatedly it states that the reader is to recognize or confess that Jesus is the son of God.  From experience, I can say this is not always a simple thing.  So many challenges can be made that it is all too easy to remain silent about what one believes.  I unfortunately have fallen into such traps.  Why present my thoughts when they seem to be so easily dismissed?  Thankfully, though, the letter of 1 John doesn't say that we have get into arguments over the matter.  Quite the contrary, we are to "love one another" (1 John 4:7), and in so loving, we need to share the reason for this love: I love because he first love me (4:19).  In a world that is fueled by arguments and finger-pointing, this is relieving.  This is a courage I can aspire to.  I can peacefully share my case, my story.

What one does need to be careful of, though, is to not follow the standard example set by the men of 2 Chronicles.  In last week's reading, Asa diligently followed God until his final years; this week, courageous Jehoshaphat also turns from the good he has witnessed and joins wicked king Ahaziah (2 Chronicles 20:35-37).  Being courageous is one thing; staying courageous is another.  How does one not become like unfaithful Israel (as described in Hosea), a people who made a covenant with God only to forget him, traipsing in blood, committing villainy, waiting like robbers to prey on a man (Hosea 6:7-10)?  Along with describing the condition of Israel, Hosea presents a possible answer: 4:6 says "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge", and 4:14 states, "a people without understanding shall come to ruin."  This seems to indicate that part of staying courageous in the Lord's ways entails paying attention and not simply standing by and letting things just happen around you.  Proverbs 4 appears to affirm; it is all about how a son should pay heed to a father's wise instruction: "[B]e attentive to my words, incline your ear to my sayings.  Let them not escape from your sight; keep them within your heart. [...] Keep your heart with all vigilance" (4:20-23).  Likewise, we too should be vigilant and attend to wise instruction, for this will help fuel the courage of living one's faith.

A discipline that yields great rewards

This weekend I was talking with a friend about "the runner's high" - the moment, after many days of practice, when pushing through a long mile, that the runner (or me - wink) feels she is soaring and could keep the pace endlessly with ease.  I would suggest that a third of this high is established by the thrill of success.  YES!  I finally made it.  Another third is surprise or disbelief.  Did I just do that?  The final third is the body settling into a powerful position, like a sigh of relief intermixed with the fervor of pep.  It doesn't have to work at it anymore; instead it can just be what it is. 

To reach this moment takes discipline, sometimes a painful drill of training and routine.  Yet it is this effort that makes the celebrated high.  Hebrews 12:11 kind of captures this: "For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."  Of course, this verse isn't about running.  Rather, it is encouraging the reader to endure against sin and immorality and to know that successful struggle brings great rewards.  A lack of discipline, on the other hand, leads one astray.  Proverbs 5:23 states, "[A man] dies for lack of discipline."

Asa from 2 Chronicles is a good example; in chapters 14 to 16 we have this story of an upstanding guy's epic fall.  Asa begins by recognizing God.  He declares, "Lord, there is none like you" and asks for God's help in his battles (14:11).  When Azariah the prophet directs Asa to remove the "detestable idols," Asa takes courage and does what many before him did not do.  He puts the idols away and repairs the Lord's altar (15:8), and it is noted, "there was no more war," until Asa's 35th year (16:19).  But... then in Asa's 36th year, he trips up... pretty thoroughly.  Without checking in with God like he used to, Asa takes silver and gold from the Lord's house and spends it on an alliance with the Syrian king in order to conquer all of Judah, and then when Hanani the seer confronts him, Asa put Hanani in the prison stocks (16:10).  In one last hurrah of stupidity, he acquires a severe disease in his foot, doesn't seek help from God, and dies (16:12-13). 

One pictures Asa having experienced a "runner's high" and then becoming complacent.  Well, I got it made; time to kick back and relax... to his death bed.  Psalm 119:109 expertly says, "I hold my life in my hand continually."  This is probably why Deuteronomy states, "Take care less you forget..." (8:11) and "Take care less your heart be deceived..." (11:16).  See, discipline is about more than "arriving"; it is about making the next steps easier, more automatic. There is a reason for the saying, "If you don't use it, you lose it."  While "a runner's high" might be a pretty sweet place, it is not "the end".  Think of all the work one loses if calling quits then and there.  So "lift up your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees... strive for peace with everyone and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord" (12:12-14).  We should be so committed that instead of lasting for that one kind moment of helping a single neighbor, we are, with familiarity, able to help many neighbors, to show in daily practice who God is.  That is the ultimate "runner's high."  Instead of it lasting for a fleeting moment, it pulses on, for a good long time. 

Seek God in the Moment

There are days when I don't want to think about the hundreds of moral possibilities, the gray areas on which so many people have so many differing opinions.  Should I give money to people in need though there is a chance they will spend it on something harmful to themselves or others?  Is it okay to lie to one to protect another?  Which is kinder: confronting people about their poor choices or letting them discover it for themselves? Such questions can plague and overwhelm me.

Thankfully, Hebrews 5:14 recognizes that one's "powers of discernment" need to be trained "by constant practice to distinguish good from evil."  Though we are blessed with commandments like the solid ten in Deuteronomy 5, which directs, among other things, not to steal, murder, or commit adultery, there will be plenty of times when we will have to consider more than the obvious. Perhaps, this is why Psalm 119 contains requests for open eyes (vs. 18), understanding (vs. 27), enlargement (vs. 32) and inclination (vs. 36) of the heart, and teaching (vs. 66) of good judgment.  We won't always know the answer, but this can get us in the habit of turning to one who does. 

And ultimately, maybe this is what living in today, "as long as it is called 'today'," (Hebrews 3:13), is all about: seeking God in the moments we find ourselves.  "[S]eek the Lord your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deuteronomy 4:29). 
If we don't want to enter a state of the living dead, as is given in Ezekiel's vision with the valley of dry bones (37:1-14), then we need to turn to the Lord and he will breathe life in us, a life that helps us to be examples for others (1 Peter Chapter 5:5), even when its hard.




  

Found Poem

Found Poem
(Numbers 33-36, 2 Chronicles 1-4, Psalms 110-115, Proverbs 7, Ezekiel 21-28, 2 Timothy, Titus)

Blessed is he who fears the Lord -
God in the heavens who turns
rocks into water pools and flint
into water springs. 

Don't be like those who became
the very idols they worshipped, who grew
proud hearts and declared, "I am
a god," ruining their sacred relationship
and turning it to dross.  They forgot
the Lord, and he returned their lewd
ways upon their head.

Destroy figured stones and metal
images.  Be like a young Solomon
who asked for knowledge
and wisdom to govern and lead. 
Ignore the seductive speech
of the wayward and guard
a good deposit. 

Become a model that others
can live by, speaking soundly
with integrity and dignity.  Show
a good faith and endure hardship
with gentleness.  Fan into the flame
the gift of God who gives you power
love and self-control.