In times of uncertainty and change, finding the courage to move forward can feel impossible. The Book of Joshua opens with a nomadic nation standing at the edge of the Jordan River, having just lost their unparalleled leader Moses. They faced seismic change with questions that might sound familiar: Who will lead us now? How will we know when we're safe? Why can't things stay the same?
Yet God's message to Joshua was simple: "Be brave and strong... Don't be alarmed or terrified, because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
What Does Courage Really Mean in Times of Change?
Courage isn't the absence of fear but properly placed confidence as we face uncertainty. Many of us base our confidence on our abilities—to take up space, to be appealing, to be right. But what happens when we reach the end of that rope, when our answers are overpowered by more complex questions?
God's instruction to Joshua reveals the true foundation for courage: "Be brave. Why? Because the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."
This doesn't mean God has ordained whatever difficult situation you find yourself in today. Rather, it means God is eager to meet you exactly where you are. As the hymn says, "The love of God is greater far than tongue or pen can ever tell. It goes beyond the highest star and reaches to the lowest hell."
How Do We Find Courage When Everything Is Changing?
1. Find Courage to Press Pause and Adjust Your Point of View
When facing uncertainty, it's okay—even encouraged—to take a timeout and survey what's ahead. In Deuteronomy, just before Joshua begins, we see Moses climbing Mount Nebo where God shows him the Promised Land before his death. This mountain perspective gave Moses a chance to remember where he came from and exhale one final blessing.
Similarly, in Matthew 28, Jesus takes his disciples to a mountain for the Great Commission. While Moses saw a strip of land, Jesus invited his disciples to envision all nations being welcomed into God's loving fold—not through conquest but through invitation and service.
Being hopeful isn't being naive. It requires incredible bravery to align your heart with Christ's and ask, "What would it look like for heaven to come to earth?" This perspective is accessible through prayer and clarified through community.
2. Find Courage to Follow the Right Marching Orders
Joshua was instructed to "carefully obey all the instruction that Moses commanded" and to "never stop speaking about this instruction scroll." The book of Joshua contains this narrative theme of "I told you so"—follow the law and good things happen; don't follow it and face tragedy.
Today, people with platforms often strain through biblical laws to make points that elevate themselves while dehumanizing others. We see Ten Commandments cemented to cafeteria walls in schools where children cannot afford to eat. We see prisons built overnight to house image bearers of God who cannot fathom what crimes they've been accused of.
But as Christians, our actions and opinions should align with Christ. Jesus simplified all the law into love:
- "Love your enemies and pray for those who harass you" (Matthew 5)
- "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your being, and with all your mind... love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22)
- "Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you also must love each other" (John 13)
Love is the law. Love doesn't guarantee efficiency, ease, or prosperity, but it does promise that wherever you go, you won't be alone.
3. Find Courage to Redefine What Success Looks Like
Breaking cycles of thinking in terms of borders, winning/losing, us/them is tough work. We've bought the lie that the ultimate goal in life is stockpiling power and stuff, and that the only way to get rest is through relentless work and ruthless ambition.
For the Israelites, the Promised Land represented the end of wandering—they could finally rest. But spoiler alert: once they arrived, they didn't find the rest they dreamed of. There was always one more battle to fight, one more alliance to forge.
We've also bought the lie that more rest for someone else means less rest for me—that if someone else gets something good, there's one less good thing for me. This scarcity mindset makes the world a scary place.
But Paul says, "If anyone is in Christ, behold it's new creation everywhere." Success isn't determined by what we have but by what we can share. The early church didn't seek political power or try to reform Rome into a more holy empire. They simply loved the world they found themselves in, living at the margins and trusting God would be with them.
In many ways, opting out of the game is successful. God has already gone before you, has been behind you, and is currently beside you. You are not alone, and good things are still coming.
Life Application
As we face our own Jordan Rivers—those thresholds of change and uncertainty—consider these questions:
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What would your life look like if God is more present with you than you think and more active in your life than you realize?
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What does it look like to be strong and courageous and step forward into the things God has called you to?
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How can you bring your presence—and God's presence in you—as a peaceful and healing presence to the people around you?
The promise remains the same from Joshua to Jesus to today: "Be courageous, for the Lord is with you wherever you will go." This isn't about conquering territories or accumulating power—it's about trusting that God walks with us through every change, every challenge, and every new beginning.