Be strong, and let your heart take courage.
—Psalm 31:24
Charles Swindoll wrote these words about courage:
“Courage is not limited to the battlefield or the Indianapolis 500 or bravely catching a thief in your house. The real tests of courage are much deeper and much quieter. They are the inner tests, like remaining faithful when nobody’s looking, like enduring pain when the room is empty, like standing alone when you’re misunderstood.”
When we think of courage, we tend to think of the spectacular: SWAT team kind of courage.
But Swindoll’s fine line about “enduring pain when the room is empty” characterizes some of the most courageous people I’ve known.
Bedside courage. Caregiver courage. Betrayal courage. Loneliness courage.
Those who must stand by and watch. Those who have no choice but to be strong.
It’s someone you know. Or maybe you.
Courage is standing strong when you don’t know
what to say or what to do—but you are there.