Gathering the Courage

In my lifetime eleven different people have taken the oath of office to be President of the United States. The event still holds me spellbound as an event of significance and change. The concept of starting with a clean slate and shaping a new administration is especially exciting in this time of uncharted waters of instability in the world. I read a verse in the Bible this morning that caused me to stop, re-read and ponder a concept. It is the place in the Gospel of Mark where Joseph of Arimathea wanted to ask for the body of Jesus after the crucifixion so that He could give Jesus a proper burial. It said that he “Gathered his courage” and went and asked the authorities for the body. Courage is one of those things that hangs around , sometime loosely, and must be gathered up from time to time. I need to keep it close so that when I need it , I can gather it up at any given moment . I don’t think courage can be bottled up and kept on the shelf. It apparently is to be gathered as needed. Rather than looking at it as an asset that I own, I must look at it as a gift from God that is available to be appropriated. My prayer for President Obama is that He will find the courage that he will need to face the challenges in a way that will honor God and in turn will bless the nation. Please join me in praying relularly for the new president and all our leaders.