Value

We understand value in direct contrast to something else. It's meaning is derived from a spectrum of what is desired and what is hated. The value of gold is valued in contrast to other metals, the value of love best understood in comparison to hate. The value of friendship viewed through the lens of not having friends, desiring meaning and relationship in sharp contrast to emptiness without community. The better we understand the value of something, the more focused we are in pursuit of it.

What do you value? Is it evident in your actions? Is the comparison between what you value and what you do obvious? If I value love, is it easily seen? Is it poured out daily in my actions, my words, my work, my relationships? If I value integrity, do my words match my meaning match my actions? If I value kindness, do others see it? If I value justice, do I mete it out? The spoken is not nearly as loud as the unspoken.

Value is as dark is to light, truth is to lie, hope is to despair, life is to death. It's a contrast, a tension, a meeting place of two adversaries, an appointment between friends, it's vital and it's important. What value marks your life?

Courage

Courage is being convinced that what you are about to do is greater than the fear standing in the way to do it. It is the strength of the mission greater than the cost. It is the understanding that the part you play is more important than the personal discomfort of the moment. Courage is eternal, fear is temporal. Courage is raw and untested, it is risky, it is brave. Courage means self-discipline, practiced control when doing someone completely beyond your control.

Courage freed slaves, it brought answers, it furthered history, courage solved mysteries, ran due diligence, evoked faith in dark times, withstands injustice. It stood in the gap, weathered the attacks of evil empires, dictatorships, military regimes. Courage takes you out of your bed, away from the warmth of your dream-surrounded blankets, jars your lazy mind, and calls you to stand.

Courage joins faith and love and propels you on the adventure of your lifetime. Do we see that our coffers of courage have gone low? Are we alarmed that self-comfort has arisen in our nation? How do we recover? How do we find a courageous heart once again?