Thursday, October 6, 2011

courage

I recently read To Kill a Mockingbird again. It is one of my favorite novels. It is chock-full of wisdom and insight and beauty and truth. I think if I could choose any literary character to sit down and have a chat with it would be Atticus Finch. In the book, Atticus shares about what courage really means.
"Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do."
Sometimes I find myself hesitating to stand up for truth, not wanting to make unpopular decisions even when they are the right ones. Sometimes I find myself feeling defeated before I even begin. Sometimes I want to shy back and just prepare in advance to lick my wounds. Sometimes I wonder if it is worth the effort and heartache of fighting when it seems that the results have already been determined.
Yet, I find myself fighting on. Sometimes I feel like I am skillfully wielding a sword, slaying my enemies. Sometimes I feel like I am crouching behind my shield, just trying to avoid the major blows. And, most times, I am somewhere in between.
"I can't just fight when I think I'll win...that's the end of all belief." ~ sara groves
And so, I fight on because sometimes you do win...

2 comments:

  1. I am going to have re-read To Kill a Mockingbird again after reading this post. It is my favorite book of all time (and that's saying a lot because I love a lot of books!).

    Loved this post, loved Atticus' quote!! I find myself hesitating to stand up for truth too, because I have a fear of failure. I have to remember, it's not about me. It's about God and those who are lost that He loves. If I don't fight for them, who will? Maybe no one. And that really hurts. Even more than failing. Maybe they can't all be saved, but if one can, isn't that worth it? I know what God thinks about that!

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  2. Garrison will be reading this book soon for school. So hard to believe how old he is now!

    I dread "rocking the boat" and all that I will have to endure after it's rocked, but there is a HUGE difference in being a peacemaker and being a peacekeeper.

    At the end of the day you have to decide if you would rather be despised by man or stand for righteousness.

    One of my constant prayers is that He would help me to just keep standing.

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