"The courage of life is often a less dramatic spectacle than the courage of a final moment; but it is no less a magnificent mixture of triumph and tragedy. A man does what he must -- in spite of personal consequences, in spite of obstacles and dangers and pressures -- and that is the basis of all human morality...In whatever arena of life one may meet the challenge of courage, whatever may be the sacrifices he faces if he follows his conscience -- the loss of his friends, his fortune, his contentment, even the esteem of his fellow men -- each man must decide for himself the course he will follow...For each man must look into his own soul."
-Sen. John F. Kennedy, 1956
Profiles in Courage
More than ever, I am finding we are a culture obsessed with approval. In some arenas, it is more blatant than others. In this election season, we are bombarded by it because approval is the life-blood of the politician. They even call them 'approval ratings.' Can you just imagine how awful it would be for your existence to be wrapped up in an approval rating? But we all want to be liked. We want likes and smiley faces on our posts on social media. We want pats on the back. My profession, pastoral ministry, is overcome with the desire for approval. We serve large volunteer organizations, and I don't know a pastor that doesn't want to be liked.
But this is true of nearly everyone. Yet, approval isn't all we want. We want security, peace, and to be admired. We want easy street. Courage requires a detour from easy street. That's why it's often so absent.
I am convinced that we need a new generation of courageous people. We need courageous leaders, courageous parents, courageous coaches, courageous pastor, courageous teachers, courageous bosses, and courageous. But to act with courage, one has to face the discomfort that follows it. If nothing is ever difficult, ever costly, ever risky...courage is not needed.
The problem with our lack of courage is that our value is derived from the things we stand to lose should be act courageously. We like being liked. We like fame. We like our security. We like being popular. We like that our friends respect us or think like us. But nothing great will ever happen in this world if people put their need for being liked about what is the right thing to do. We call that integrity. We call that character.
For people of faith, there is a deeper calling for courage and a deeper understanding of our self-worth. The inner urging for courageous action must be coupled with the understanding that, though our courage might lose us favor with others, our favor with God was determined on the cross of Christ. Our valor is rooted in the undeterred belief that God's love can never be separated for us. You see, for people of faith it's actually easier to be courageous. But that doesn't mean it's prevalent. All of us, even those of us who call ourselves Christians, are subject to the temptation of security, being liked and not rocking the boat. But this world that needs changing won't be changed by those that are liked most. It'll be changed by those that exhibited courage for the most noble causes.
Whatever you face today. Be courageous. The world needs the most courageous version of you.
But this is true of nearly everyone. Yet, approval isn't all we want. We want security, peace, and to be admired. We want easy street. Courage requires a detour from easy street. That's why it's often so absent.
I am convinced that we need a new generation of courageous people. We need courageous leaders, courageous parents, courageous coaches, courageous pastor, courageous teachers, courageous bosses, and courageous. But to act with courage, one has to face the discomfort that follows it. If nothing is ever difficult, ever costly, ever risky...courage is not needed.
The problem with our lack of courage is that our value is derived from the things we stand to lose should be act courageously. We like being liked. We like fame. We like our security. We like being popular. We like that our friends respect us or think like us. But nothing great will ever happen in this world if people put their need for being liked about what is the right thing to do. We call that integrity. We call that character.
For people of faith, there is a deeper calling for courage and a deeper understanding of our self-worth. The inner urging for courageous action must be coupled with the understanding that, though our courage might lose us favor with others, our favor with God was determined on the cross of Christ. Our valor is rooted in the undeterred belief that God's love can never be separated for us. You see, for people of faith it's actually easier to be courageous. But that doesn't mean it's prevalent. All of us, even those of us who call ourselves Christians, are subject to the temptation of security, being liked and not rocking the boat. But this world that needs changing won't be changed by those that are liked most. It'll be changed by those that exhibited courage for the most noble causes.
Whatever you face today. Be courageous. The world needs the most courageous version of you.
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