Courage

Sarah was probably about 5 or 6 years old when she asked the LORD for courage in one of her bedtime prayers. When I heard her request, I thought I’d “man up” and do my fatherly and spiritual responsibility by informing her how to “pray with understanding.” I was ready to expound to her the meaning of courage, but before I did, I asked Sarah, “What is courage?”

She immediately responded with, “Not turning away”.

I was astonished. Not only did she understand it, but she defined it better than I would have. With my ego being somewhat deflated, I still had hopes of getting in a word of wisdom. “You know, Sarah,” I continued, “I was going to tell you that courage meant not being afraid…”

She cut me off. She never let me finish my sentence. She just looked at me so knowingly and said, “Dad, you can be afraid and still have courage. Courage just means that you face something and not run away from it.”

I was flabbergasted. I’m the daddy. I’m the one who was supposed to teach. I am the one who was supposed to explain to her the great mysteries and fallacies of life. She’s the one who was supposed to be dazzled by my great wisdom and understanding—not visa versa.

I would have admitted to Sarah that her understanding far exceeded mine except that I didn’t quite have the courage...