A turning point for me in my walk with God was realizing the
only nuggets of wisdom I needed, the main source of advice, and the greatest
encouragement came from my Bible. Self-help type books, 5 easy step fix-its,
and inspirational quotes without God’s voice in them suddenly seemed useless.
Often times they even contradicted each other – something that I hadn’t been
able to identify before I really began to study and cherish the Word. But then
it quickly became easy to decipher…this is what God says, this is what the
world says. We all have the choice of who we are going to listen to. Often we can’t listen to both, especially
when they’re opposing each other.
With that being said, I didn’t expect to be moved by a
fortune cookie the other night. They tend to be a dangerous blend of ancient
Chinese proverbs, Biblical blurbs, psychic predictions, and pop song lyrics.
But my husband’s strip of wisdom read, “Courage
is grace under pressure.”
Lately, I’ve been praying for grace… to give it, to choose
it, to recognize it and pass it. And I’ve been feeling under pressure, just the
day-to-day kind, surrounded by squabbles and young defiance mixed with some my
own fatigue and irritability (plus an extra 25 lbs out front can put on some
real pressure too). But if courage
equals grace under pressure, then is
courage actually what I’m in need of?
Courage and Grace – two words that frequent my Bible and two
promises that God has gifted us. I did I quick Google search to see if this quote
may have actually been from the Book of Proverbs or something along those
lines. After all, it fit the theme. But in fact it was Hemingway who said it.
Ernest Hemingway. Probably one of the only authors from my school days that I
could still remember the titles, plots, and themes of some of his novels and
short stories. I always enjoyed his overly simplistic, yet somehow thoroughly
detailed writing style. A great author
for sure, but not exactly God.
With this on my mind, I went to the Word. These verses were
still perfectly fitting Hemingway’s concise definition, yet from God’s frame of
reference. I learned what this housewife, mom, everyday-doer may been lacking
is ever-present courage - the ability to give grace under pressure.
1 Corinthians 16:
13-14 instructs us to:
-Be on guard.
-Stand firm.
-Be courageous.
AND do everything with love.
Grace is just that. Courageously doing everything with love while
standing firm and on guard despite the pressures around us. Emphasis on doing everything with love. God’s personal way of doing things, isn’t it?
Then Psalm 27:14 brings up another aspect. It says,
“Wait patiently for
the Lord. Be brave and courageous. Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.”
So courage = grace under pressure.
Grace under pressure = doing everything with love + waiting patiently.
The equation makes clear what I’m asking for and what I
need, but the cookie was missing one key part that makes it all possible…God.
Titus 2:11-12 says,
“For the grace of God has appeared
to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and
to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age…”
The grace of God that has appeared and who teaches us to use
self-control, even under pressure, is Christ himself. Without him, I wouldn’t
stand a chance. And hear this…when He walked out on the water and his friends
were terrified and freaking out, He called out to them, “Take courage. I am here!”
Because Christ is here with us we can take courage. We can
display grace under pressure. We can choose to act in love and patience and
self-control. Because He is here! When I’m praying under pressure, I’m asking
to act in grace. When I need to act in grace, I must have courage. In order to
do any of this, I must remember first that
He is here. Mid-tantrum. Mid-battle. Mid-moodswing. Mid-contraction. Christ
is there, so I can take courage. And when under pressure, I can choose grace.
