Bold And Brave.....Who me?

Can you be brave and bold, and not be fearful? Bold means fearless in the face of danger. Brave means feeling or showing no fear. What is the face of danger, and if you don't show fear, can you still be fearful? I think it depends on the situation, and on how one comes through that situation. There have been times in my life when I was very fearful, but I faced the danger without showing the fear. I went through the trial without retreating. Someone once said bravery is not the absence of fear, but the facing of fear. All children face fears of one kind or another. Adults face different fears every day. There is the fear of changing schools, not understanding what the lesson is about, or that horrible gut wrenching fear when called on in class. For adults it can be fear of losing a job, a mate, a child, or financial loss. We all face fears of the unknown. Whether it is a change in circumstances or a medical outcome, if we can't see the end, we can become fearful. For some the ultimate fear is death.

To me facing those situations, dealing with them, trying to form a plan of action, is a form of bravery. The alternative is to lock the problem out, and try to pretend it doesn't exist. That is cowardly, and I have done that in my life. What God taught me was, that the problem is still there, waiting to pounce, and it never goes away. It sometimes takes more than we have to be brave. Then there are times when we may surprise ourselves with our bravery, we didn't know we had. I was held up at gun point when I worked for a finance company. The gun was inches from my face as the gunman demanded all the money we had. Then he held the gun on all of us, and walked us to the back room. I remember thinking he was going to shoot us all in the back, and I waited with held breath for that gun to fire. I had to have been terrified, and yet I remember staying calm. Obviously, we weren't shot, but just locked in and warned to stay put for five minutes. If someone had told me this would happen, I probably would have said, I could never go through something like that, but I did and I was not as scared as I thought.

The biggest form of boldness I face today, is telling others about my Jesus. That should not need bravery or boldness, but even though we believe, and we know what God did for us, it can still be scary to share with others. We are fearful of not saying the right thing, fearful we don't know the scripture, or fearful they won't like us anymore. Our Pastor shared with us on Sunday, just how important it is to share and make a difference in others lives. As he said, "If not me.....who?" More and more as this world becomes even more worldly, I need to catch fire and share the Gospel of Jesus. Another pastor years ago shared that he had a neighbor who did not know Jesus. This pastor kept thinking, " I should go talk to him." He put it of, and put it off, and finally decided to go see him the next day. Only the man died in the night, and never heard that Jesus loved him, and he could have a relationship with Jesus and ensure he would go to heaven. Needless to say this pastor felt terrible, and lived with that regret. There is a song that says, Thank you for being that Sunday school teacher, that friend, that neighbor that told me about Jesus. Without our sharing what that means in our lives, some may never have the chance to decide for Jesus, and never make it to heaven. Am I brave enough, bold enough, on fire enough to tell others what Jesus has done for me? And if not me.....who?