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Jesus could be direct.
“Do you want to be healed?”
The rude sounding question was directed at a man who had been unable to walk for 38 years! The crippled man was sitting by a pool that according to some of the older translations would occasionally be stirred up by an angel–and when that happened the first person in would be healed.
Well, did he want to be healed?
Something important we need to think about here, as someone who works in the therapy side of thing–this learned helplessness or finding our identity in our victim status needs to be reckoned with.
Was this guy sandbagging? Was he too comfortable with his long-established status as a beggar/cripple? Sometimes fear can keep us in an “okay” place, versus choosing the more scary path of having to stand up and live as God intended us to.
Do You Want to Be Courageous?
How about you? Are you too comfortable being a victim of anxiety? Is your identity found in being scared?
Do not accept that. Your Creator wants to lavish his grace upon you and show you his power (See the book of Ephesians).
So if you are ready to move forward in courage, let’s start with the concept of volition.
What is Volition?
According to one of my favorite authors, Dallas Willard, volition is:
…The exercise of the will, the capacity of the person to originate things and events that would not otherwise be or occur. By “originate” here we mean to include two of the things that most prized in human life: freedom and creativity. These are really two aspects of the same thing when properly understood, which is the power to do good and evil. (from “Renovation of the Heart”)
Notice the good or evil, you can set your mind to do either–but to stay in a place of fear is evil. God put you here for more than that.
Apostle Paul discusses the importance of volition:
By sending his own son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. (Rom. 8:3-6)
Obviously we want life. So we must set our mind on the Spirit. But how.
1. Choose your direction. Prayerfully choose to move toward God beginning the first thing every morning. Meet with God in His Word every morning if possible. Ask for the eyes to see what the Father is doing and the courage to step into whatever he needs you to do.
One important note about this–it is very popular to claim to be “Spirit-led” today–but do recognize something vital. The Holy Spirit is not the only spirit out there.
Here’s the most important thing to set your mind on initially if your knowledge of Scripture is not substantial–the Holy Spirit will never lead you to do something in violation of the revealed Word.
So if you do not know Scripture, be very careful about any leading you perceive are from “the Spirit.” If you are a novice in terms of Scriptural knowledge–take any leadings you have to someone who is very competent in Bible and run it by them.
In the meantime, hit the Word hard!
2. Work on the Spiritual Disciplines. The traditional spiritual disciplines are things such as fasting, prayer, meditation, solitude, simplicity, and others. For a great primer on the disciplines, get Richard Fosters excellent book Celebration of Discipline at this link.
The power of the disciplines as empowered through the strength our Savior provides is in gaining dominance of the spiritual side of life over the physical, or the flesh.
The more disciplined you become, the greater the power you will have in becoming courageous as God intended.
Count the Cost
Jesus was clear on this matter, we should count the cost of following him. (Luke 14:28) To be completely transparent, following Jesus can get you killed–many of our brothers and sisters have paid with their lives for stepping out in faith.
So think clearly–do you want to continue in fear, playing it safe, and never see the power of God in your life.
But do think, we all die.
Few people ever fully live.
Choose life, choose the path of courage.
(Image by iStockphoto standard license)
