A Call For Courage

A Call For Courage | By Mike Sanders, President and Founder of Junto Tribe

We have all been created for a purpose and have been equipped to live out that purpose with the guidance and help of our Creator and God.

Each and every masculine heart should find this exciting and motivating and find great encouragement and drive to increase his potential and grow toward a level of self-mastery. But there’s more because self-mastery and great potential are nothing without a heart that cares, loves, leads, and sacrifices for those around it. Furthermore, when we allow the Spirit of God to flow through us and over us, we increase our influence and strength because we are literally carriers of His influence and strength. What was it that Paul asked the Corinthian believers in 2 Corinthians 13:5 (NIV)?

“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus lives in you…”

But still, something lurks in the shadows deep within our hearts that longs to keep us from stepping out into the arena of life with our gifts and abilities. That something is fear, which is usually followed closely behind by doubt. It would seem that too many believers have allowed their fears and doubts to keep them from believing and accepting God’s calling on their lives. In essence, many of us have focused on Satan’s plans and have forgotten the power inside of us. This is not what being a follower of God is about.

It’s time we men heed the call of courage that our God has been imparting on us since the creation of man.

As I posted last week, I believe that the virtue of courage needs to (at the very least) include the following framework:

• Faith and trust in God.
• Belief in something bigger than ourselves. In other words, we need purpose.
• A strong character honed through training which produces stress inoculation and resilience.
• Sacrificial giving.

As we saw last week, David was just a man like you and me (or more appropriately, a boy) when God called on Him. As we see in 1 Samuel 16:12 (NIV):

“Then the Lord said, “Rise and anoint him, he is the one.”

If you’ll notice, God never asks David if he’s ready to step into his calling. Instead, He calls David into amazing and frightening responsibility, and in the process, gives him incredible power, which is manifested in him by the Spirit of God (1 Samuel 16). It seems that God sees something in David that others can’t see – God sees his heart – the very center of his being.

The Bible is not clear on whether or not David knew exactly what God was getting ready to call him into, but I think we can assume that he had no idea that he would someday be king. Conversely, Samuel, of course, knew that David would someday replace Saul as the King of Israel. Nevertheless, David continued to trust in God’s anointing and began the process of moving in the direction he was being instructed to go. To put it a different way, he seemed to be listening to God’s Spirit and chose to trust the direction of his life even if he couldn’t see the path clearly.

We see God’s plans begin to take root in 1 Samuel 16:14-23. King Saul is slowly losing control of himself as an evil spirit is tormenting him. It seems the only way Saul can get relief is through music. In particular, harp music, which just happens to be something that David has a talent for. With that knowledge, Saul’s attendants send for David to rescue the king from his tormented state.

With that as a backdrop, I think there’s an interesting thing happening here that I would like to point out. There’s something about David’s presence that the people around him notice or sense.

For example, one of Saul’s servants seems to recognize something special about David. He says the following in 1 Samuel 16:18:

“I have seen a son of Jesse of Bethlehem who knows how to play the harp. He is a brave man and a warrior. He speaks well and is a fine-looking man. And the Lord is with him.”

As we see here, the servant points out David’s particular talent for the need that Saul had, then drew attention to his bravery and warrior mentality, and even his looks. He recognizes mentality, physical appearance, and most importantly, he notices David’s spirit, which has been anointed – smeared with the Spirit of the Lord. Notice what the servant states:

“…the Lord is with him.”

It seems that this servant could sense something in David’s presence. Yes, he feels that David could help his tormented king. Yes, it was David’s ability to play the harp that they were looking for. But there seems to be something deeper going on here. I would like to suggest that the servant sensed the presence of God in David and it manifested itself in a very real way when he was around people.

Furthermore, if you’ll notice in vs. 23, the evil spirit that tormented Saul sensed the same thing:

“Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take his harp and play. Then relief would come to Saul; he would feel better, and the evil spirit would leave him.”

It’s interesting to me that we are introduced to one of the most important characters of the Bible through his heart (1 Samuel 16:7). It’s also interesting that the Bible reminds us in Acts 13:22 about David’s heart:

“He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.”

David allowed God’s Spirit into his very being. The more he let God into his heart, the more it changed, and the more David’s overall being changed. This is an example of Interdependent Realization, which we’ve discussed in previous blog posts. The Holy Spirit was changing his spirit, mind (or soul) and body. It began in the immaterial spirit and began changing him at the material (physical) level. He was being transformed into the man that he would need to be to take on his calling and purpose.

So what does this mean for you?

For starters, we know that David had a heart after God’s. One of the virtues of that truth is the amazing relationship David had with God. He was in constant worship, prayer, and connection with his life Force. He had an intimacy with God that was his strength throughout his life. Even when he failed, and David failed hugely in his life, he returned to that strength – his relationship with his Father in heaven – and he never betrayed the anointing. No matter what, David chose to fight back against his fear and doubt and always returned back to the will of God’s purpose for his life. And no, it wasn’t easy. In fact, it was incredibly hard. But David never took his eyes off God for very long.

And this is what men like you and I need to do today. The world is in desperate need of men who are willing to fight. Accept the anointing of God on your life and let Christ’s power manifest itself in you. You have work to do.

His presence will be all that you need.

We have been given a spirit of power – God’s Spirit. We have not been given a spirit of fear – that is from our enemy. Power makes things happen. Fear destroys life-giving power. What will you choose to do today?

“I was not left on planet earth to be in hiding waiting for Jesus’ return. I am here as a military representative of heaven.”

-Bill Johnson (When Heaven Invades Earth)

Seek. Adapt. Endure. And Go Forth.

(If there is any chance you may be battling with PTSD, please click here to be taken to our application page. We are here for you.)