A Man of Courage
By
Susan Klein
"Have
I not commanded you? Be strong and
courageous. Do not be
afraid; do not be discouraged,
for the Lord your God will be
with you wherever you go."
Joshua 1:9
Joshua 1:9
He made his entrance
into the world on February 12, 1809. It was nothing grand. His mother likely
delivered him in their tiny log cabin with one window and a dirt floor. He was
named after his grandfather, whose life (coincidentally?) ended by gunshot.
Abraham Lincoln’s
courage had opportunity to present itself at an early age. His beloved mother,
who had nurtured his desire to learn, died when he was only nine. This began a
chain of personal tragedies in his life as he lost his only sister when he was
eighteen, and then his four-year-old son when he was forty-one.
His personal losses
seemed to only fuel his courage to stand up for the things he believed in. He
boldly spoke out against wars and slavery, often to the dismay of his peers and
constituents. His courage was evident in his speeches and letters as he stood by
his convictions and his trust in the Almighty. The
following is an excerpt from a letter he wrote to General Dan Sickles during
the Battle of Gettysburg. (1)
"Well, I will
tell you how it was. In the pinch of the campaign up there (at Gettysburg) when
everybody seemed panic stricken and nobody could tell what was going to happen,
oppressed by the gravity of our affairs, I went to my room one day and locked
the door and got down on my knees before Almighty God and prayed to Him
mightily for victory at Gettysburg. I told Him that this war was His war, and
our cause His cause, but we could not stand another Fredericksburg or
Chancellorsville... And after that, I don't know how it was, and I cannot explain
it, but soon a sweet comfort crept into my soul. The feeling came that God had
taken the whole business into His own hands and that things would go right at
Gettysburg and that is why I had no fears about you." [July 5, 1863]
These are the words
of a courageous man, a man who went against the tide to take a stand, yet
humbly prayed for God’s outcome rather than his own. Let’s honor him today by
mimicking his example and heeding his words, “With malice toward none; with
charity for all; with firmness in the right, as God gives us to see the right, let
us strive on to finish the work we are in…" [Second Inaugural Address,
March 4, 1865]
GOING DEEPER:
1) What are the
things you fear most?
2) Spend some time
in prayer asking God to give you courage and assure you of His presence in the
midst of your fear.
FURTHER READING:
(1) Greatamericanhistory.net
Susan is a We Women Bible Study coordinator and one of it's teachers. She and her husband Mark enjoy tutoring and working with inner-city youth.
Susan is a We Women Bible Study coordinator and one of it's teachers. She and her husband Mark enjoy tutoring and working with inner-city youth.
