Courage

A man of courage is full of faith - Marcus Tullius Cicero 63 AD

I remember so well my attitude when I joined the Marines. I believed in our cause in Viet Nam, I was ready to die for my country and I volunteered for anything that meant getting in the war. There were others who were like me, and we formed what was an elite band of brothers who felt like we could walk through walls.

And then I remember coming back to the USA, landing in LA International Airport, getting cursed at, called murderer and feeling totally deflated at how we fought that war - our own country would not let us win, we fought with one hand tied behind our back. And for the next decade and a half I sunk into my addiction, having lost my faith in what I believed in. My courage to fight was gone.

Success is not final, failure is not fatal; it is the courage to continue that counts. Winston Churchill

In 1984 it all changed for me. I found something to put my faith back into use, a personal relationship with my creator through His son Jesus. In him I found redemption, forgiveness and the courage to change what had become a very dysfunctional life. This time I put my faith in the right place, on the rock, in the one that had the power to heal my defects which had grown to many, and the one who could put my life back together again.

Courage - ability to do something that frightens one. Strength in the midst of pain or grief.

On September 2015 I got the phone call that my youngest son had been killed in a motorcycle accident. It was devastating, it was the worst moment of my life. Now 30 years into my recovery and Christian faith, I began the 5 hour drive back to Atlanta to face three women who were wailing and completely heart broken, his Mom, his wife and my youngest daughter. 

I did not want to speak to friends or people who wanted to console me - maybe I was on the phone 15 minutes. I wanted to hear from my creator how to handle this, how to understand this and how to process my grief. So for 4 hours and 45 minutes God and I spoke and he reminded me that my faith would give me the courage to carry on. And he reminded me of Peter who failed his first few courage tests but came back under the power of the Spirit to be one of God's greatest men.

Courage is the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently.  Maya Angelou

The Lion in the Wizard of Oz found his courage, Peter got his, and I am so thankful I found mine. Truly we can say that faith in what you believe in can propel us all into a courageous lifestyle, in which we make courageous decisions.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference!