Choose to Be Strong

Guest (Female) - Shauna: I'm Shauna with Joni Eareckson Tada Sharing Hope. Here's Joni with a special word.
Joni Eareckson Tada: How do you keep trusting God when life falls apart? What does faithfulness look like when God does not give you the outcome you hoped for? These are the questions that shaped the life of Elizabeth Elliot. She was one of the most influential Christian women of the 20th century: a missionary, an author, Bible teacher, and a widow way too soon in her life. Her life was marked by extraordinary suffering and an extraordinary trust in God. It is why I have admired her all these many years since I broke my neck. In 1956, her husband, Jim Elliot, was killed along with four other missionaries while attempting to reach the Huaorani people of Ecuador. Rather than turning away from God in bitterness, she returned to live among the very people who killed her husband, sharing the gospel and demonstrating the forgiveness of Christ. She held on to the unwavering conviction that God is sovereign, He's wise, and He is good, even when His purposes are completely hidden from us. Elizabeth was a strong, brave woman. When she died in June of 2015, I had the honor of speaking at her memorial service at Wheaton College. When memorabilia from her many travels were given to her friends, I received a rough wooden plaque with these words burned into it: "Be strong and be brave." This wooden plaque has rested on my desk ever since, a constant reminder of God's abundant grace available for me to be strong and be brave. It is like what God says in Joshua 1:9: "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid and do not be discouraged. The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go." That is a command from God to us: a command to be strong and a command to be brave. Just like those words were burned into the wood on that precious plaque, I have burned those words into my heart. I want to always remember that God promises His grace will be there to make me courageous. All I must do is choose. I have got to choose to participate with God. At the moment that I act on His command to be courageous, when I step out and choose to be strong, at that instance, His grace carries me forward in power and I become what God has commanded. Grace is not available if we merely snap our fingers, as it were, or pull the lever or press the call button. Grace isn't even available when we memorize Joshua 1:9. Rather, we have got to trust in God as we move forward in grace, that is, in His enablement, His power. Even Jesus had to choose to obey, as it says in Hebrews 5:8. Paul, in Philippians chapter three, pressed on in the grace of God. He strived. The Christian life is a series of often hard choices that move us forward in the power of Jesus Christ. That is one thing that I have learned from Elizabeth Elliot.
Guest (Female) - Shauna: Wow, Joni, this is such a good lesson. It is helpful to be reminded that Elizabeth Elliot lived and grew in Christ this way. Friend listening, Joni has written a new book in which she offers more of these robust lessons—lessons that are especially helpful if you're going through a hard time. The book is called *Keeping Faith When Life Hurts*, and you can shop our store at joniradio.org. While you're there, we posted a snapshot of that wooden plaque from Elizabeth which has meant so much to Joni. It is all there for you at joniradio.org.