Courageous Faith

Is there any area in your life right now, where if you were really honest, you would say that you're letting fear make the decisions for you? Is there anything in your life you believe it's what God wants you to do? You actually want to do it, but you're too afraid to move forward, you're too afraid to go for it. Fear, anxiety, worry is something that all of us struggle with sooner or later. It's part of what it means to be a human being. In fact, I don't know if you've ever thought about this, human beings are the only living things on the planet that worry. I mean, animals can get afraid and that kind of thing, but human beings, we're the only creatures that fret about the future. It's part of the way that God created us, we have free will, we can think about things, we have souls, but because of this, we get afraid about things that haven't even happened yet and we're the only creatures on the planet that do this. It's part of what it means to be human. Here's our verse for the series, I want to encourage you to memorize it. This is 2 Timothy 1, verse 7, and I'm giving this to you in the King James version because that's the way I've memorized it, and so I can just quote it that way, and so I'm just teaching it all to you. Here's what it says, for God hath not given us a spirit of fear. Fear doesn't come from God, anxiety doesn't come from God, worry doesn't come from God, that's from another source. For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of what? Power, love, and of a sound mind. Quickly, fear does not come from God. When you and I remember who God is, there's a power that begins to show up. What you believe about God is the most important thing about you, and so you just go through the run in the verse. God hasn't given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of, do you remember what the next word is?

Of love, right. Because God loves us, we can be courageous. In fact, God's love, his mercy, his grace, is the fuel for courage. So he hasn't given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of, do you remember the last part? And of a sound mind, yeah. When you begin to think about God's love for you, even in the midst of trial and trouble, there's something comforting that begins to happen, and then there's a power that begins to show up. You begin to take heart, and it allows you to begin to think clearly. You have a sound mind, because fear will cause you to fumble in your thinking. When you're afraid, you're not thinking straight. When emotions are high, logic is low. Alright, for somebody this weekend, that's what you need to grab a hold of, maybe just for today. When emotions are high, logic is what? Low. God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, of love. Think about God's love for you, and then take heart, and then you'll begin to think clearly once again. Please memorize 2 Timothy 1, 7. Today I want to talk about focusing on who God is, on the bigness of God, in the realm of his power, and also in the realm of his mercy, grace, and love for you. The series is called Take Heart. I want to talk to you today about how to do that, because none of us want to be cowards. I don't think any of us sit around and go, you know what I'd like to do today? I think I would just like to wimp out on life today. I don't think anybody thinks that. I don't think any kid running around acting like a superhero is thinking to themself, when I grow up, I just want to be a wimpy coward.

Yeah, nobody thinks that. So how do we take heart? Because being a coward, backing out, wimping out, is going to be a temptation for all of us. And until we learn to control our emotions, until we learn to take heart, we will be missing out on God's best for us. One of the most common commands in all the Bible, do not fear. Do not be afraid. Take heart. Take courage. Derivatives of that. It is all over the place in Scripture. And the reason you don't have to be afraid, and the reason I don't have to be afraid, is because we serve a great and mighty God who loves us, who has given his life for us, who three days later rose again, conquered death, hell, and the grave for us. And in him, we are more than conquerors. There is no need to be afraid. So how do we take heart? How do we take courage? Let me show you this. This is John chapter 16. And if you brought your Bible, I hope that you will turn there. And I just wanna say this a moment. We always put the scriptures on the screen. We're gonna continue to do that. But I wanna encourage you to start bringing your Bible to church. And here's why. It will help you start looking things up.

And so maybe begin to practice that. If you don't have your Bible this weekend, it's all right. If you forget it one weekend, again, we're gonna have the verses on the screen for you. But bring your Bible so it'll help you begin to look things up. You can also jot little notes. It could be there's a moment when somebody is speaking here at Sun Valley and it's like, oh man, I think God is speaking directly to me. When that happens, write a little note of what God says in the margin of your Bible. And that way, when you see that passage again in the future, you'll be reminded of what God said to you in the past. It's just a really good practice. John chapter 16. So Matthew, Mark, Luke, John in the New Testament. Beginning in verse 32, I'll give you a little bit of background. Jesus knows he's going to be going to the cross. He's speaking to his disciples. He's gonna give a word of prophecy here and then a word of encouragement. Here's what he says. A time is coming, and in fact, has come when you will be scattered, each to your own home.

And then look at what Jesus says. You will leave me. Jesus knows it's coming. Jesus knows what it's like to feel the pressure of life, the pressure of death, the pressure of difficulty. No human being that has ever lived has suffered more than Jesus, especially when it comes to the construct of the human soul. Jesus knows that he'll be going to the cross. Jesus knows that he'll be separated from the Father. Nothing like that had happened in all eternity. Jesus understands your pain, your struggle, your trials, even more than you do. And he has suffered worse. In Christianity, we have a God who weeps and who bleeds and who has experienced our pain. Jesus says, you will leave me all alone. Then he says, yet I'm not alone, for my Father is with me. Verse 33, he says, I have told you these things. I told you it was gonna happen. I told you it was coming. I told you there's gonna be difficulty. I have told you these things so that in me you may have, what's the next word? Peace.

It is God's will for you, even in the midst of trial and trouble, to experience peace in your soul. And then Jesus says this, in this world you will have trouble. But, what are the next two words? They're underlined, read them out loud with me. But what? Take heart. Jesus says, take heart. I have overcome the world. All right. So God knows what it is to suffer, to go through trials and pain. He can relate to us in this way. He's experienced it at a far greater level than you and I will ever experience it. That's a little bit of a mystery. He's experienced it in a way that you and I cannot fathom or comprehend. But he understands. Jesus also says here that you're gonna have trouble in the world. Let me just say this clearly because I know a bunch of us here at Sun Valley, you're new to faith, and you watch guys that do what I do or women that do what I do on TV. And they say things like, when you give your life to Jesus,

you're gonna be rich and you're gonna be healthy. And if you're not, you just don't have enough faith. And if you'll just send me some money right now, God will bless you a hundred fold. And you see all that stuff on TV. Lean in for a second, look at me. Yeah, that's not true. That's not true. One of the things that kills me, that's called the prosperity gospel and it's a lie. One of the things that kills me about the prosperity gospel is that it's only true in America because in America you have some opportunity. It doesn't mean that the prosperity gospel is true. It means it can only be sold and spun in America. If it's not true for the little orphan in Africa somewhere, then it's not true for anybody. Does this make sense? You and I have a savior that bled and died and suffered. And then three days later rose again. We just read the words of Jesus that in this world you will have trouble. And so right now, if you're having trouble in your life and you're thinking to yourself, God, what did I do wrong? God, is it because I don't have enough faith? God, is it because you were punishing me because of what I did way back when in the backseat of that car when I was a teenager? Now you're getting me. If you're having all of those kinds of thoughts,

let me just tell you, Jesus said, in this world, you will have trouble. It is part of what it means to be human. It's part of what it means to walk in this life, in this world, that is broken, okay? So there's this prosperity gospel thing that let's just set it aside. Now, there is a principle in the Bible called the principle of stewardship. Here's what that means. God owns everything, and you and I are just managers. We're just passing through. We came into the world with nothing. We're gonna leave with nothing. In the middle of all that, we're just managing what God has loaned to us for the season of our life. Even your very breath is borrowed, and one day, the owner of all things, God, will take it back, and you'll know when that happens because your life will be over, okay? The principle of stewardship would say if we manage things God's way, and we do what God says, it makes sense that the owner would entrust us with more. That's not prosperity gospel. That's not I give to get. That's not if I just believe enough, I'll always be healthy and wealthy and wise. That's just if I manage God's things, God's way,

then there's a chance he'll entrust me with more. Obedience tends to lead to really good fruit. Back to the passage. In this world, you will have trouble. It's just going to come, and then Jesus says, take heart, take courage, all right? There's horses in the theme, so I'll say it this way. Cowboy up, can you imagine Jesus saying that? Yeah, cowboy up, why? Because Jesus has overcome the world. How do you take heart? I'm gonna give you four ways to do it. So when you're freaking out, and when you're worried, and when you're struggling, and you're having a moment where you're fretting, let me give you these four things, okay? And the thing is, it's not like, do these four things and you're good, okay? This is kind of a cycle. This is how you kind of work through your fear and anxiety and worry. And these are four things that I practice, and I'm just telling you, it's very helpful, all right? So how do we take heart? Number one, tell God how you feel. Tell God how you feel. It is okay to express your emotions to God. In fact, it's really important that you do so. If you begin to read the largest book in your Bible, in fact, if you just take your Bible and let it fall open,

that's Psalms, a whole lot of those Psalms, which are songs, prayers, and poetry, a whole lot of that is just people expressing their emotion to God. And it is very raw and very human and very real. God wants you to express your heart to Him. And it's not like you're gonna like, you know, start griping and whining. It's not like God's gonna go, oh my gosh, I didn't know you felt that way, all right? He knows, okay? One of the things I say is, you can't play poker with God. Why? Because He always knows what's in your hand. So you just tell God what you're feeling for better or for worse. Sometimes when I'm preaching, you know, I'll give this example, how we shake our little bitty fist in the massive face of the Almighty God. Have you guys ever heard me say that? Yeah, okay. If you've done that, just know you're in good company because everybody has done that. I have done that. Sometimes I'm just like so frustrated with God and I'm just telling Him what I'm feeling. And sometimes I'm even telling Him how I don't like what He's allowed to happen and I'm just going for it, okay? God can handle that. It's like me when my boys were like two years old

and they would throw a little temper tantrum. How many of you, your kid threw temper tantrums? Yeah. I don't get onto my kid, I mean, well, I kind of do. Actually, when they started throwing a temper tantrum, it got to a point where I didn't do anything. I just let it happen. And then when they were done, I'd be like, you done? All right, let's move on. But when they're two, I'm not like upset at them. They're two, that's what two-year-olds do. You and I are very, very small. God is very, very big. And listen, He understands our frustrations. And so it's okay to express those emotions. It's okay to get them out as long as we end with, even though I'm upset at you, God, even though I don't like what's going on right now, God, these are all my emotions and God, I'm gonna trust you and do what you say anyway. That's how you wanna end that. But it's okay to express emotion. Let me kind of give you the run. If you're going through a difficult time right now, something has happened. These are all normal emotions, and they're all part of a process towards healing. And you can express all of these to God. And if you're in a difficult time right now, these emotions will come in waves.

Like you might have a moment where you're just fine and then like out of nowhere, bam. Has anybody ever had that happen? Yeah, I can remember standing in the ocean like as a seven or eight year old kid and I didn't know a wave was coming and I was looking at somebody on the beach and the wave just boom and like took me with it. Sometimes in difficult seasons, our emotions are like those waves. They just bam, hit you, you didn't see it coming and they kind of carry you for a little bit. Normal emotions and this is kind of a process and it's not linear, it's kind of cyclical. You kind of have a hodgepodge of these at different times. Shock, so something's happened, it's not good. You got a diagnosis, somebody else got a diagnosis. Somebody has done something they're not supposed to do. Whatever, you lost your job. Shock, fear, anger, sadness. And then as you work through the grief of whatever's going on in your life, eventually acceptance. But those waves are gonna happen. Wave of shock, wave of fear, wave of anger, wave of sadness, all of that is normal and you can take all of that to God, listen, without a filter. He knows every thought you have. He knows every emotion you are feeling

and He loves and cares for you and I'm telling you right now, the King of kings and the Lord of lords, Abba, Father, the great God of the universe who through our faith in Jesus has adopted us into His family, He can handle it. He can handle it. God is not prim and proper. Just, all right, look, okay, read the Bible. Like God is not prim and proper. He is real to the bone. Like He knows what's going on and there are all kinds of things in scripture and all kinds of things in prayer and if it's in the Bible, it's okay. Talk to God about what's really going on in your heart. I have some friends right now and they let me come to their house once a week, at least, for dinner. And the guy, he's one of my best friends and then over time, his wife has become like a sister to me and we'll be talking and how's it going this week and I'm talking about different things going on in my personal life and she always says the same thing to me. We'll talk about it or I'll talk about what's happened and then she'll look at me and say, well, how does that make you feel? And I gotta tell you, just for all the men, you're gonna get this.

She'll say, how does that make you feel? And in my head, and I don't say this because I love her and respect her, but now she knows, okay. But in my head, I'm like, oh, God. I don't talk about how I feel. And then she just starts pulling on the string. But I'll tell you this, as I sit there with her and her husband, right? She'll ask me, how does that make you feel? When I start talking about it, man, it's so helpful. It's so helpful. Because you have these waves and you gotta talk about it to God and to somebody else. Which brings us to the second thing you gotta practice if you're gonna take heart. You tell God how you feel. Number two, you accept help from others. You accept help from others. If you're taking notes, you can write this down. We tend to hide in our pride. We tend to hide in our pride. I wanna encourage you not to do that. In times of difficulty, when bad things are happening, when something came that you weren't expecting and you're going through a difficult time, our natural reaction is to withdraw and isolate. I wanna encourage you not to do that. You have to accept help from others. That's one of the reasons why we have the church, so that we can help each other.

At Sun Valley, this is not a country club for self-righteous saints, all right? This is a hospital for sinners. All of us have struggles in life. All of us have difficulties, either because of sin we've done or because of sin done unto us. All of us need each other. This is why God put together the church. This is why, when we talk about small groups, I'm always gonna challenge you to get in one. Because you need real friends around here that really help you follow Jesus in the real stuff of life. But you get help from others. Okay, so I'm gonna talk to all the men here for a second. I said a moment ago, you know, somebody talk about your feelings. All right, all the men. We're not. I'm not very good at friendship. And I don't know that we know how to make friends and be friends. Ladies in general, not every time, but in general, women are better at that than men are. So men, I'm gonna give you a couple ideas. I have about five friends that are in my inner circle. And I can tell you right now, there has never been a season in my life that I've been more grateful for these five men.

But that group of five has been built over a long period of time. And it's been built over doing hobbies together. All right, so here's what I do. I like to be outside, that's how I roll. So I've got friends, our whole friendship has actually been built through hiking. We just hike and we talk about our lives. For men, usually we're not gonna sit somewhere and just, oh, let's have a deep conversation now, you go first. That's just not how I work or you work. But when you're hiking and you're exercising, you tend to start talking about life. I like to hunt and fish. Some of the best conversations I've ever had in my life were around a campfire. It's the end of the day, we're hanging out, but as we're sitting there staring at the fire, taking a stick and poking around in the coals or whatever, we're talking about real life. I was thinking about it this week. How have these friendships been built? Hiking, camping, hunting, fishing, and then the third one for me is eating. Really good friendships have been built over eating. I have a friend right now, we have just a standing appointment. We have dinner once a week together and we just talk about life.

For all of us, men and women alike, being around a table together, enjoying a good meal is very biblical. It's very New Testament. The gift of hospitality in the scriptures is really, really important. For all of you men and women who can cook and who can make your home nice for guests, God bless you. I don't know if you've ever thought about it, but that is a spiritual gift that you can use in the lives of people to love them. It's how friendships are crafted and built and made strong over a period of time. And I will say this to all the men and women, if you're gonna have a friend, you gotta commit to it because there are always seasons when you don't wanna hang out with that person. Because you're bored or something happened or whatever. Listen, forgive, get over it, make it right, commit to the friendship, because a day is gonna come. Because in this world, you will have trouble. When something's gonna happen in your life and everybody else is gonna walk out, but because you have a committed friendship, that person's gonna walk in. Because that's what friends do. And they're gonna be there and they're gonna listen to you gripe about your life

and say the same details and the same story over and over and over and over and over again, because that's what friends do. They've heard you say it 137 times and they're gonna be there for 138. We need each other. It is one of the most spiritual, God honoring things you can do is make a real friend. You help them follow Jesus, they help you follow Jesus. It's very biblical. It's part of what it means to be a disciple and follower of Jesus. And so make some friends, no excuses, get on with it. And friends will help you take heart. Number three, so we're gonna tell God how you feel, we're gonna accept help from others. Number three, stop asking why. Stop asking why. What are you talking about, Pastor Chad? Okay, this is gonna sound cold and it's not gonna be emotionally satisfying. So before I break this down, I'd like you to write this down, all right? In life, pain is inevitable, but misery is optional. Would you write that down? In life, pain is inevitable, but misery is optional. Okay, you and I believe this lie

that if we just understood why, we would feel better. We'll help you, that's not true. So we ask ourselves these questions, right? Because we wanna know why. Why did that person die? Why did the divorce happen? Why did this person get sick? Okay, well, I'm gonna tell you why. Why did that person die? Everybody, because people die. Everybody that's born, if the Lord tarries, is gonna die. Now, that doesn't sound very pastoral, does it? Why did that person die? Because people die. That's what we do. The mortality rate is still hovering right around 100%. Divorce, why did that happen? Because people are sinners, and broken, and different people do crazy things. There's sin in the world, and I can't live up to my own standard, much less God's, and the same is true for all of you. And sometimes there are things that break something to an extent that it can't be repaired. We live in a broken world, that's why. Why did that person get sick? Because there's sickness in the world, and none of us are completely immune to it. And so right now, right, why, why, why? I'm giving you the reason why.

Is it emotionally satisfying? No, but here's what we do, here's what we do. When we sit around and say, why God, why God, why me? And that's the way we choose to deal with the pain, we're stepping into another category, and we're just embracing misery that paralyzes us and keeps us stuck. I'm gonna tell you something about God. He does two things, he reveals, which means revelation, he lets us in on some things, he reveals, and he also conceals, and both are his privilege. In other words, he reveals some things, but some things he'll conceal, you'll never know why. Because it wouldn't be good for you to know why, and when you get to heaven, you'll have some understanding, and perhaps sit down with Jesus, and he'll explain it to you. But why is not gonna help you. And I know you wrestle with that in your mind and in your heart, but even if you knew why, it probably would not be emotionally satisfying. So here's what we do, we rise above that, and we say, God, even if I don't know why, I choose to trust you. There's this book in the Bible called Job, and Job has all kinds of bad things happen to him. I mean, his life is like a really bad country song, right? Somebody shot his dog and stole his Bible, and it just gets worse from there. I mean, it's bad, and he asks why for 37 chapters. And then God starts asking him some questions.

And in 37 chapters, Job doesn't get a real reason. But he chooses to trust God anyway, and then it goes on from there. Listen, the best that you and I have is you look at the cross, you look at the resurrection, you remember God's love for you. My guess is he's been faithful to you in the past. You remember those things, and then you whine, and you gripe, and you talk to friends, and then you get up, and you dust yourself off, and you move on in following Jesus. Pain is inevitable, but misery, that's optional. Which brings us to the last one, number four. You gotta choose courage. Courage is a choice. It's a choice. It's something that you decide to practice. I have a coffee mug at home with John Wayne on it. I know you're all shocked. There's a quote on there from John Wayne, and it says, courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway. It's a choice. Yeah, you're afraid. Yeah, you're worried. Yeah, you're anxious. You gonna let that rule your life today? You gonna let worry, and anxiety, and fear make all of your decisions for you? Gripe, complain to God, get help from others.

Wrestle with God, you know, ask Him why, but you may never know this side of heaven, so what do you do with all that? You just get up, and you follow Jesus, and you walk on. There's this passage of Scripture in the Old Testament. It's about David. I'm gonna end with this, and then I wanna pray for you. And David has a baby, a child, that is sick and dying. And David goes to the altar, and he begins to fast. and mourn and pray on behalf of this baby, this child. And I mean, he doesn't eat anything, he doesn't work, he doesn't bathe, he doesn't shower, he's just there mourning, fasting, praying for the life of this child. And you know what happens? The child dies. And David's servants are so nervous to tell the king, because it's King David, that his child has died. So they're like, he's been doing this for days, how's he gonna react? What's he gonna do to us? Because you know, he's the king, he's powerful. And so they go and tell him, and this is David's response. My child will no longer be with me, but one day I will go to him. And then David gets up, and he goes and he bathes, and he shaves, and he puts on clean clothes, and he eats, and he goes back to work. It's like David is going, okay, God, I trust you. That didn't go the way I wanted, but you're still great, you're still good.

I'm gonna close that chapter in my life, but there's a whole lot still to be written. Friends, whatever's going on in your life right now, there's a whole lot left to still be written. Take heart, mourn, cry, deal with it. Embrace the pain, but then remember, God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. And in this world, you will have trouble, but Jesus says, take heart, I've overcome the world. You're still breathing, God still loves you. Let's move forward with him, because there's a lot left to be written. Would you pray with me? Let's pray together. With our heads bowed and our eyes closed, all locations, if you are in a difficult season right now, and you would say today, I'm in a difficult season, and you would say today, I'm in a difficult season, but I wanna take heart, would you just lift your hand? I wanna pray for you specifically, just lift your hand. Yeah, all over the room. If you're like, Chad, you can't see me. No, I can't, but God can. So when I pray, he knows I'll be praying for you too. Yeah, thank you, I'm lifting my hand with you. Let's pray together. Father, you saw every hand, you know every heart, you know every story. And I pray today that we would remember

that the power is in the practice, and we can take heart. Because Jesus, whatever's going on in our lives, ultimately you have overcome it. There are chapters to come in our days ahead that have yet to be written. And we can trust you. And so may we move forward in faith, take heart, and just trust you, follow you, do the next right thing one day at a time. Just do the next right thing one day at a time. Teach us, we pray, and may we walk courageously with you, in Jesus' name, amen.