Choosing to Be Brave

God Never Asked You to Be Brave Alone

By Catriona Futter

What does it mean to be brave?

Courage has been defined as being motivated from the heart to do something brave. I love this idea—that our choice to be brave comes straight from our hearts and what matters to us most.

Imagine a mother lion defending her cubs. If you are a mother, chances are you would not think twice about leaping into a dangerous situation to defend your children because of how much they matter to you.

What Does It Mean to Be Brave?

Being brave does not necessarily mean doing something extraordinary or fearless. Sometimes it is simply choosing to show up each day with grace and courage to fulfil all our roles.

Sometimes being brave simply means choosing to stay in a difficult situation.

Perhaps you are in a job that is really difficult, but the difference you are making is worth the cost. For you, being brave means staying, bringing your best, and trusting God’s timing and purposes for your life.

Maybe you are in a relationship that is stagnant, fraught with a history of hurts and resentments. You are both trapped behind walls of mistrust, fear, lack of hope for change. Leaving might seem like the easier option, but perhaps for you, choosing to be brave means choosing to stay. It may be choosing to gradually take down the walls, seek help, and persevere with making changes that are hard and costly, but ultimately will restore connection and hope.

Being brave means choosing to have that conversation with your partner when you would prefer to avoid the issue altogether. After all, you are both coming from entrenched positions built up over years of misunderstandings and hurts. Why would you choose to step across into no-man’s-land and risk being vulnerable when all you fear is more conflict?