Lenten Meditation: Our Christ Church Youth Give Their Perspective
Arise, for the Task is Yours…Take Courage and Do It
Submitted by the Christ Church MS/HS Sunday School Class
As we discussed this year’s theme, we broke it down into three components:
· What it means to have courage,
· who do we think is courageous, and
· what are God’s tasks for us?
What does it mean to have courage?
Courageous acts can be big or small. Sometimes it takes courage to do nothing, such as when someone tries to pick a fight with you. Courage is being confident and stepping out of your comfort zone to do the right thing for others, or to stand up for yourself. When we think of courageous people whom we often think they are fearless, but courage is when we do something in spite of our fear. Acting courageously in never easy, but we are comforted to know that God is always with us.
We invite you to consider what it means to you to have courage.
Who do we think is courageous?
As we talked about those whom we found courageous, we came up with a wide variety of examples, but they fell into a few common categories.
(1) Those who risk their lives for others. From our list this included police and firefighters, the first responders during the September 11 attacks, and World War I runners, who delivered critical information from unit to unit while under enemy fire.
(2) Those who take a stand to advance the rights of others. From our list this included Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr. and Rosa Parks. Not only did they put their lives in danger by standing up to the powerful political and social structures of the time, but they did so by using words and non-violent action, even when the powerful responded with violence.
(3) Those who speak out against personal attack. From our list this included people who are bullied, and women who are brutalized for turning down men, as in the case of Laxmi Aggarwal, who was scarred in an acid attack in an attempt to turn her beauty into shame. It takes a great amount of courage to stand up to an attacker, and to be a role model for others to do the same.
(4) Those who live life to the fullest. One example is athletes, who risk injury and give it their all every game they play. Also included are those who overcome personal adversity, such as Lee Thomas, a well-known TV broadcaster who has vitiligo. He used to cover up his vitiligo completely, fearing his TV career would be over, but now is an advocate for others with the condition.
(5) Those who ask forgiveness and show humility. No one is perfect, and often those we look up to disappoint us in some way. We talked about how we should think about people who have done something wrong, particularly celebrities that are in the public eye. We thought that it was not that they failed, but how they then responded that was most important. We believe those that show courage are the ones who admit to their wrongdoing, humbly ask forgiveness, and actively work to do good going forward.
We invite you to consider who you find courageous in your life.
What are God’s Tasks for Us?
God calls each of us to different tasks, and it is up to us to listen for our task and have the courage to pursue it. We each thought about what we are called to do, and came up with the following:
· Help People
· Be kind
· Do good things for others
· Work hard every day towards our goals
· Make use of the abilities and talents we’ve been given, and always put forth our best effort
· Stand up and speak out when we see something that is not right, regardless of the possible backlash
· Seek justice for all people
· Promote awareness of causes that mean something to us
· Respectfully listen to and consider other points of view
· Support those who lead in causes we believe in. While when we think of courage we think of leaders, but leaders cannot lead without followers. Supporting leaders in worthy causes is equally important.
