Feature Friday: Courageous

Good Christian movies are hard to find.  I remember growing up in youth group and watching movies like The Cross and The Switchblade.

While the message was good, the movie was pretty bad.  We Christians have really fallen behind in the realm of media.  Most Christian music when I was growing up sounded like it was a decade or two old.  It really is a shame.



But I've been excited to see solid Christian movies in the last few years.  From the blockbuster Narnia movies to the less known ones like To Save a Life, Facing the Giants, and Fireproof, Christian movies have really been stepping it up.  This weekend, Courageous comes out in select theaters.  As you can see in the picture at the top, its about a group of police officers who are courageous every day fighting to protect their town.  But they aren't the heroes at home that they are when patrolling the streets.  The movie is about a string events that leads these men to decide to fight even harder for their marriages and children than they do when they have the uniform on.  I expect this movie is going to be really good and highly encourage you to check it out.

View Trailer Here

Remember, Christian movies like this one don't have the huge Hollywood appeal that keeps movies in theaters for months.  It may not be in the theaters long, so if you want to see it, go this weekend. 

Whenever I think of courage, I remember two quotes.  One is from the Bible and the other is from a writer named Ambrose Redmoon.

Be of good courage, and let us play the men for our people, and for the cities of our God: and the LORD do that which seems good to him.  2 Samuel 10:12

"Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgment that something else is more important than fear."
--Ambrose Redmoon

In the story from 2 Samuel, God's people have been surrounded and outnumbered.  They could have fled or surrendered, but that would mean their land would be stripped from them, their families would be enslaved, and their freedom would be lost.  Joab stood before his men and spoke those words to them.  He basically tells them that they all know what the right thing to do is, tells them to man up, and tells them to leave the results in God's hands.  If it seems good to God for us to die, then so be it.  If it seems good to God that we win, so be it.  But we will not allow our people to be enslaved because we were too afraid to try.

I would imagine Joab was scared.  The odds were against him and he knew it.  But there were two things more important to him than fear.  The first was the people he was sworn to protect.  The second, and most important, was doing what was right before God.

Courage isn't just needed on the battlefield.  Its needed in a lot more situations than we might expect.  Fear tempts us to pass up many opportunities to honor God.  It takes courage to stand up for someone being bullied at school.  Might the bullies turn and set their sights on you?  Yes.  But Joab would say, "Man (or woman) up, do what you know is right, and leave the results to God."  When others are cheating, backstabbing, lying, and doing everything they can to get that promotion or secure their job, it takes courage for you to be totally honorable in the workplace knowing the boss is looking to let someone go.  You might not make the cut without resorting to underhanded tactics.  "Man up, do the right thing, leave it to God."  It takes courage to ask for forgiveness and try to start over in a broken relationship whether its with family or friends.  You might be rejected.  You might be embarrassed.  "Man up, do the right thing, leave it to God."  It takes courage to share your faith with a friend.  What if they get upset and don't want to hear it?  What if they ask tough questions?  What if they always look at you as the weird born-again Christian from that point on?  "Man up, do the right thing, leave it to God."

Things worked out well for Joab in this story.  God gave Him the victory.  But there will be times when you do the right thing and seem to lose for it.  It will takes courage to do the right thing knowing it may not work out.  But whether you win or lose, you'll have won the greater battle by standing for what is right and honoring God.

What are some things you've been too scared to do?  What has God been laying on your heart that you haven't had the courage to do?  Pray that God would give you courage and adjust your perspective.  Pray He would help you to see that there is something more important than your fears and that is honoring Him.  Then go and take a step of faith and leave the results to God.