008: Learn How to Be Courageous From a Big Chicken

Listen to hear how Jesus helps us be courageous.

Here are the show notes:

Hi, this is CindySpencer. And today we're going to talk about learning how to be courageous from a big chicken. And who's the big chicken? Me. Most of my life, I've been on the big chicken side versus the courageous side.

Now, I have learned a lot about being courageous. And it's completely different than I ever thought it was. And I just want to share how being courageous is not what we think it is. It is possible. I'd like to share a story that I heard another person share that happened in history in the United States down in San Diego, no, San Francisco, they were building during the Depression, during the 30s, they were building that big, huge Golden Gate Bridge that's there by San Francisco.

The sad thing was they were losing a lot of men, a lot of men were dying, because as they're building this big bridge, if they fell, they would drown in the ocean. And you know, they were way high up. And that's a big fall. So one of the men came up with a plan to devise this big, huge net. And I'm not sure exactly, but it sounds like it went the full length as a bridge wherever the men were working. And it cost a lot of money, which you know, during the Depression-era they didn't have, but it cost a lot of money for them to build this net. But it was so worth it because it saved so many lives. Men were able to work go to work on the bridge, and they didn't have that fear of am I going to fall today? And how many of us know that when you have something like that it affects your work, or whatever you're doing that you need to be brave for.

And so these men were so thankful and so many lives were saved after they put this big netting in. And not only that, they discovered that the work got done in record time. And I don't remember all the details of how fast but it was in record time. And they figured out it was because the men were able to go up with confidence. And know that when they went up to work, they can work and be safe. And how many of us know that part of being courageous is knowing that if we are being courageous, we will be safe.

That's a huge factor in every single one of us, through all of mankind. You know, the other day, I looked up the word courage. And do you know, the very first definition of courage was the heart. And then it went on to talking about brave and fearless and going out, even into the face of danger. But it starts with the heart and in the Bible when it mentions the heart, it's actually tying into your whole soul, which is your mind will and emotions. And that's where all this courage takes place because thinking about it, for the dictionary to say that a person going out bravely and fearless, they have to know in their heart, in their mind will and emotions who they are. There are many people out there that don't have a relationship with God or Jesus. And they're very brave. But they're doing it out of their own strength. Somewhere in their life, they built up the confidence that gave them that bravery. In my world that didn't happen. And I was not brave I was a big chicken my whole life. Because I never developed that confidence to be fearless or any of that. None of that happened for me until I found Jesus and realized that he was my net. And I didn't have to look at myself anymore. Even though I found Jesus over 35 years ago, I still was looking at myself and leaning on myself to do everything, which did not help at all in the courageous area. A couple of years ago, when I got totally set free from condemnation, I knew my right standing, I knew that I was righteous and that God saw me as his daughter, and loved and so free from all that nonsense, and all the lies of condemnation and what comes with it, that it was all gone. Then I was able to be more courageous, and go out and do some things that I wouldn't normally be brave enough to do. When I did have moments of weakness. And when I had those moments where I got into fear, I would sit there and remind myself the Word of God that says, I am the righteousness ofGod in Christ Jesus.

And even if I had to say that 50 times in a day, I would say it because the word of the God is even how Jesus fought the enemy in the wilderness for 40 days when he went out there fasting, and you can read about it in Matthew four and Luke four, where Jesus went out after he got baptized, and he was out there fasting for 40 days. And Satan came to him and tempted him. Three different things. And the very first one was his identity. Are you really the Son of God? This happens soon after Jesus just got baptized, and the whole heaven opened up. And Papa God comes down and says, "This is my beloved Son in whom I'm well pleased." So Jesus wasn't gonna even bat an eye at that comment from Satan saying, Are you the Son of God? And what did he do? He threw back scripture, all three instances, he threw back scripture.

So scripture, if Jesus can do it, we can do it. And it's powerful. And it always brings me comfort and peace. And I have other verses that I do, too, that God can show you those special verses that are just for you. That will bring you peace and comfort. So when we do pray, we need to have the mindset that we're praying from that victorious position in God. Not from our human state, which is weak and frail, and having to strive, to perform and to please God, and to do it in our own strength. But to pray from knowing you are loved, you are already put in right standing, which is what righteousness means. Righteousness, I am the righteousness of God, through Christ Jesus, that's in 2 Corinthians 5:21 I say that all the time, if I have any moments of weakness, which I do, I tell myself and remind myself, I am the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. And it brings a renewal of my strength and peace, not of my own, but from him.

And so I just want to encourage you that if, if you're praying, pray from that victorious position that you already have. Pray from that, knowing that you are loved and that Jesus already accomplished everything on the cross and gave us the authority to call things into action to call things right to call, healing into our bodies call things into healing and our families. Even if you had a bad day, even if you had a big fight with your husband, and you said something really stupid in and you blew it with him and you feel so bad, I have done that. It could ruin your whole day. God loves us so much that something like that doesn't matter. We're still in right standing. And when we asked the Lord to forgive us for that mess up, we just need to believe that he's forgiven us.

In Hebrews 8:12, it says he will not remember our sin anymore. And in Mark 5:36, Jesus says, Do not fear any longer, only believe. Believe, and the word faith is almost the same in the Greek and the Hebrew. You just have to believe. And faith is just trusting God's Word is true and it means what it says. I struggled with that verse that says he remembers my sin no more because I struggled with condemnation for over 30-40 years. But if I had just taken his word, if I had that net, if I could have seen myself in righteousness, I struggled with receiving righteousness. And I could not see myself in that right standing because I kept looking at myself. I kept looking at the mistakes I was making, instead of looking at who my savior was, Jesus, and looking at what he did for me, and got my eyes off myself, and put my eyes back on Jesus.

And if you remember that story, in the Bible, where it talks about Peter, who got really brave, really courageous, when he saw Jesus walking on the water, towards the boat. He got really brave, and he wanted to be like Jesus, and he wanted to get out of that boat, and he wanted to walk on water. And he did. And he actually took a few steps and he was walking on water. But then what happened? He saw some waves start billowing up and he saw the storm come. And so he got his eyes off Jesus. And he started to sink. If he had just kept his eyes on Jesus, I know that I know that he would have kept going, because Jesus is our safety net. Jesus is that net, that makes us courageous women and men of God. Jesus and all that He did, is how we can be courageous and brave, and go out and do what he's called us to do. And to walk, knowing you are loved, and you don't have to walk in that condemnation anymore, or guilt or shame. It's gone. You just have to believe that he forgave you.

When you ask Him to forgive you, believe. Like Mark 5:36 says, Do not fear any longer, only believe. Remember, God loves you.