Be strong and courageous… | The Chaplaincy of Poitou Charentes

Some of you may know that we are caravanning in Sainte Marie La Mer in the south of France. However the wind called la tramontane hasn’t stopped for 3 days now. It’s quite noisy. On the good side, everything is different, the landscape, the beautiful vegetation, the Mediterranean although rough, discussing with other campers happy like us to be here on holidays and not confined in a flat because of the ‘pandemic’. At this time in our life we have to be strong and courageous. In lots of circumstances, we have to be strong and not become depressed otherwise we cannot function!
1 Where does this courage come from? In the following passage, the Lord looks after Joshua, the son of Nun and he encourages him not once not twice but five times and He also gives him important recommendations, one being ‘This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night.
<h6>God Commissions Joshua</h6>

1 After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, 2 “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. 3 Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. 4 From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory.
5 No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. 
6 Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. 7 Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success[a] wherever you go. 8 This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. 9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. 4 Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, 5for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
There are in the Old Testament many more verses that tell us we can rely on the Lord our God for help! I let you read chapter 2 that tell us about the courage of Rahab the prostitute who is brave enough to hide the spies who acknowledged that her people’s hearts have melted as they are aware that Lord is in charge, she is certainly not afraid.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 
“Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
2 - Have things changed in the New Testament? 
Well, definitely as we know for sure that Jesus, our Lord, went on the cross to redeem whoever believes in Him of their sins. By hs blood shed on the cross, we are washed and when the Lord looks at us, he sees us in and through Jesus’ righteousness. 
We can approach our mission as ambassadors of Christ, knowing that the Lord our God equips us well, sure that He is victorious and that His victory is ours. Does it mean that we are totally fearless? It should but our human nature is betraying us and we must keep feeding on the bread of life, that is reading the Bible every day, praying faithfully and meeting with our brothers and sisters in Christ. 
Have you accepted Jesus-Christ in your hearts yet? If not, then it is not too late, repent of your sins sincerely and invite Jesus in your heart to have a personal relationship with Him. He will guide you in the calm weather and in the rough weather through the presence of the Holy Spirit who is in all who believe and trust in Jesus. 
Finally I share this very encouraging explanation by Watchman Nee (The Christian)
The Lord Himself said, "Take courage; I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). 
The Lord overcame the world through the cross. "Stripping off the rulers and the authorities, He made a display of them openly, triumphing over them in it" (Col. 2:15). The Lord Jesus overcame Satan and all his armies through the cross. 
What is the world? It is the common people, our environment, and everything that tries to pull us down from our high spiritual ground. We should overcome them instead of being pressed down by them. Anything that is against the Father is the world. We should fully obey God's will. 
We should not for a moment be overcome by worldly conversations, worldly temptations, worldly atmosphere, or worldly things. What is Satan? He is God's enemy. We should not only overcome the material world; we should also overcome the world of evil spirits. The spirit of the antichrist which is the spirit of Satan is now waging war everywhere. Therefore, the saints should overcome. The believers should overcome Satan and all his works in this age. He is working in the world and behind the world. The Lord has overcome them already. Now He is calling His people to overcome them as He did.
John told us concerning these two overcomings in 1 John: (1) "For everything that has been begotten of God overcomes the world; and this is the victory which has overcome the worldâ€”our faith" (5:4). (2) "You have overcome the evil one" (2:13). "You are of God, little children; and you have overcome them [evil spirits] because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world" (4:4). Believers should not be satisfied only with overcoming their sins. As the Lord overcame the world and Satan through the cross, we should also overcome the world and Satan through the cross.