When faced with a gigantic task it is normal to quake in your boots. It is normal to be afraid. Fear is part of being human. It's been said that the Bible has 365 commands of "Don't be afraid" throughout its sixty-six books, and that's one each day.
When God asks us to do something huge, one good indicator is to feel some fear. I say this because in The Horse and His Boy, when Shasta was to be crowned the next king, he said he felt inadequate, and Aslan said it is for that reason that he should be the next king. When God asked Joshua to battle against Jericho and Canaanites, He commanded him to be courageous. He wouldn't have commanded him so if Joshua didn't need it. Fear before a huge task helps us to place our faith in God, and not in ourselves. A big task tells us we need a big God.
But how do we get this courage? Does it fall down from the sky? Even for the grace to be brave, God has the answer for us.
"Be strong and of good courage, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only you be strong and very courageous, that you may do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you. Turn not from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart out of your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe and do according to all that is written in it. For then you shall make your way prosperous, and then you shall deal wisely and have good success. Have not I commanded you? Be strong, vigorous, and very courageous. Be not afraid, neither be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
Those were God's promises to Joshua (1.6-10). Notice the key command: Be strong and courageous. God is with us wherever we go.
To gain this courage, it seems we have a two-pronged practice, a being and a doing. The doing is obeying God's Word. The being is meditation. This two-fold practice, meditation and obedience, holds the key to gaining the courage we need to fulfill God's gigantic tasks for us.
May you continue to have peace and be happy. Let us continue to desire and pray as in Psalm 19:14, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."
And may we hold on to Jesus' promise, "I Am with you always, even to the end of the age."
