This Week's Light Service Sermon

Light Service Sermons for the Month
Character Qualities of Quality Living
The Quality of Courage
DATE: January 24, 1999
TEXT: Numbers 13:1-2, 25-31

A little boy was walking through the park one day when he noticed a man selling helium-filled balloons. The little boy didn't have any money to buy a balloon so he mentally chose the balloon he would buy if he did have the money. He chose a big, bright, blue balloon.
As he stood dreaming about that balloon, a little girl approached the balloon vendor and purchased it. The little boy looked on sadly as she took the balloon, played with it for awhile, and then let it go. He stood and watched as the balloon floated higher and higher into the air.
The little boy then walked over to the vendor and asked, "Which of these balloons is the cheapest?" The vendor showed him a gray one and offered it to him for free. Before taking it the boy asked, "Mister, will this balloon go just as high as the pretty blue one if I let it go?" The vendor replied, "Sure it will. You see, it's not what's on the outside of a balloon that determines how high it will go, but what's on the inside."
When it comes to life, the same holds true. It's not what's on the outside that leads to quality living, but what's inside of us--the quality of our character. And 1999 promises to be a year when we heighten our focus on the quality of our character for at least two reasons.
First of all, these last few weeks and months have focused our attention on the issue of character like nothing else in the recent past. Whatever the outcome of the impeachment trial, character issue will be at the forefront of the political agenda for several years to come particularly as we approach the year 2000 elections. We will here debated whether what's on the inside of the candidate will indicate that he or she can be a quality leader?
The second reason for the emphasis on character is that Baby Boomers, at the rate of every 7-18 seconds, have been turning 50 for two years now. And as they enter into the middle of their lives, they will, as past mid-life generations, increasingly focus their attention on the quality of their character over the quantity of their stuff.
And so with that in mind, we're beginning a new four part series called, "The Character Qualities of Quality Living." For it is true that what's on the inside, the quality of our character, directly affects the quality of our lives. Over the next several weeks we're going to look at the character qualities of integrity, loyalty, and compassion. And to being our series today we're going to focus on the quality of courage, and we're going to do so by looking at the Biblical story of a man who experienced that quality in his life and how we can do the same. But before we talk about it, let's pray together.
Dear Lord in heaven: I want to make the best decisions I can possibly make today. Please help me consider all the facts, forces, and faces. Then give me the courage and confidence to decide. Thank you. I know I an always count on you. AMEN.
For hundreds of years God had promised the Israelites that they would one day be given a land that they could call their own, a beautiful land flowing with tall of the resources for life that they needed to live a quality existence.
But that promise seemed a long time in coming. In fact, for awhile, it seemed as if that promise was more of a false hope because the Israelites found themselves serving as slaves in Egypt. For hundreds of years they lived under the tyranny of Egypt making God's promise of a new home a faint, painful memory.
Then Moses came on the scene. And after several weeks of miraculous signs from God, the Egyptians freed the Israelites, and the Israelites finally began their journey to their new home. It was journey that took them through the hot, desolate desert. Yet, armed with the promise of their new land, they moved forward.
After awhile, the Israelites found themselves on the doorstep of their new home. Moses decided to send 12 spies into the new land to find out the best way to conquer it. The men came back 40 days later and gave their report.
They said that the land was everything God promised it would be. It was flowing with mouth-watering fruit and rich, dark soil. The beauty of the land was breath-taking. But there was one major obstacle--the land was already inhabited by several other people groups. 10 of the 12 spies said there was no way that the Israelites could defeat them and take the land.
One of them, however, a man by the name of Caleb, stepped forward and said, "It is true that the land in inhabited by a powerful nation. But let's not let that keep us from taking the land. Let's go for it. We are well able to overcome it."
Standing against the majority, in the face of overwhelming odds, even after being threatened with violence, Caleb still had the courage to take the land when the others were frightened off. And because of his courage, Caleb was allowed to enter the Promised Land while the others were not.
The reason why Caleb was able to face the situation with courage was because his heart was anchored in a big God. He knew that God had promised the Israelites the land no matter what the obstacles. He knew that God was bigger than the enemy. He knew that God would keep his promise and give the Israelites the land. And because of his belief in a big God, Caleb was a man of courage.
We live in a world today, in which the quality of courage is absolutely essential. As life becomes more stressed, as we find ourselves faced with personal, physical, and emotional challenges, as we confront increasingly more difficult ethical situations, we need something on the inside to keep us going in the face of life's tough times, and that something is courage.
So for the next several minutes I want to look with you at how God can give you the courage you need to live life with confidence. I put some notes in your brochure.
1) First of all, when we anchor our hearts in God, he gives us the courage we need to face the challenges of life.
The Israelites certainly had to face a huge challenge in order to take the land. They had to defeat a powerful enemy. But most of them, lacking courage, chose not to face the challenge. They ran from it, and as a result, missed out on the Promised Land.
Caleb, on the other hand, emboldened by his relationship with God, knew that on the other side of that challenge lay all that he was looking for and hoping for--a new home filled with opportunity.
Whenever we face a challenge, we have a choice to make. We can either run from it, or, like Caleb, we can anchor our heart in God, and with courage face the challenge. For on the other side of the challenge lies some great opportunity--some new adventure, some new insight into life. But to experience that new opportunity we need the courage to face the challenge.
A man was driving down a street when he noticed two boys fighting. One boy was a bit bigger that the other bot and seemed to be knocking the tar out of the little kid. He would punch the smaller boy, knocking him down. But then the smaller boy would jump up only to be hit again.
The man stopped the car and yelled at the big boy, telling him to quit beating up the smaller kid. But, to the man's surprise the little boy yelled back, "Hey mister, mind your business. I ain't got my second wind yet, but when I do I'm going to clobber this guy."
Life's challenges have a way of knocking us down over and over again. But God assures us that they will not defeat us. And as we keep our eyes on him he will give us our second wind, he will empower us with courage, and he will lead us through the challenge to the opportunity on the other side.
Faith in God fills us with the courage we need to face the challenges of life.
2) Secondly, as our hearts are captured by the greatness of God, we find the courage we need to enjoy life.
I came across an interesting quote the other day. It said, "Life is like being on a mule team. Unless you're the lead mule, all the scenery looks about the same."
The point is it's easy to get into a rut. To do the same old same old again and again until life becomes comfortable to the point of being boring. It's then that we can get into the habit of complaining about life and miss out on life's joys.
That's what happened to the Israelites. They had gotten into a rut. It seemed far easier for them to wander about the desert than to take their new land. Some even wanted to go back to Egypt. They knew it wasn't great, but at least it was familiar. And by becoming comfortable with the status quo, they became grumblers, always finding fault, always saying why something couldn't be done. Instead of having the courage to reach out and grab the joys of life, they continually complained. They lacked the courage to enjoy life.
The Bible tells us that God sent Jesus to give us life--a life overflowing with joy, hope, peace, and contentment. But many of us fail to experience that kind of life because we lack the courage to enjoy it. Perhaps we're afraid it might not be all we hoped it would be. Maybe we've grown accustomed to our old patterns and find them comfortable. We're too afraid to climb out of the rut. Perhaps we don't feel we deserve joy and happiness. Maybe we've gotten into such a habit of looking at the bad side of life that we don't know how to enjoy it anymore. Whatever the reason, many of us fail to enjoy quality living because we lack the courage we need to live it.
As we discover the love of Jesus and walk with him each day, he can energize us with the courage to enjoy life.
3) Finally, God can fill us with the courage we need to chase our dreams.
For hundreds of years the Israelites dreamed of their Promised Land. But when the moment came, they lacked the courage to take hold of that dream. They missed it.
Two skeletons were sitting in a corner. The first said to the second, "Why are we just sitting here?" The second said to the first, "Well, I'd get up and do something if I had any guts."
J.G. Roscoe was a multi-millionaire. His dream was to build the tallest skyscraper in the world in New York City. People said it couldn't be done. They said it would be a financial disaster. But he wouldn't listen. He, along with some friends, cashed in all of their stocks and invested the money in the new building.
Days later, in 1929, the stock market collapsed. It devastated thousands of people financially. The same would have happened to J.G. Roscoe if he had not had the courage to build his dream. Yet one year later, he began building that dream, the Empire State Building.
There are many obstacles that can keep us from our dreams--fear, a sense of unworthiness, a lack of self-belief and people who tell us it can't be done.
But as Caleb discovered thousands of years ago, you can chase your dreams. And you can do so with courage when you surrender those dreams to God. Instead of telling God how impossible the dream is, let God remind you that with him, all things are possible. Anchoring your heart in God can give you the courage you need to chase your dreams.
A young girl ran into the kitchen and asked Mom if she could watch a wildlife special on TV. "Can't I watch it, Mom?" she asked. "It's got lions and tigers and snakes and all kinds of wild animals. Please Mom, can I watch it?"
"Well, sure honey," said the mom. "It sounds like a great show for a brave little girl like you to watch."
"Will you watch it with me?" the little girl asked.
"I'm sorry, honey, but I'm kind of busy right now."
"But Mom, you've got to watch it with me--I'm too scared to watch it alone."
That's the way it is with life. It's filled with a lot of exciting opportunities, adventures, and dreams. But it's also filled with many difficult challenges. And we don't want to walk through them alone.
Thankfully, God, through Jesus, promises to walk through each day with us, energizing us with the courage we need to face the challenges, enjoy life, and chase our dreams.
I encourage you today to let God fill you with the quality of courage that you might enjoy the quality life he has for you. For as you welcome him into your life through Jesus, you, like Caleb, can be a person of courage.
AMEN