The Beauty of Uncommon Courage

Someone almost didn’t get out of bed today. Maybe she was tempted to pull the sheet over her head and ignore the light emanating from her window because the reality of her day doesn’t match the brightness or the warmth of the sun rising over the horizon. Or maybe, before she even awakened from her restless night of sleep, she felt the physical pain that accompanies her throughout every day and she just didn’t know if she could muster through it on this one. Maybe that someone is you…and only you know what hard thing beckoned you to shut your eyes again and wish the day away. But here’s the thing. Someone almost didn’t get out of bed today…but indeed she did arise in the end. The beauty of uncommon courage is that it propels us to show up when everything else within us begs us to lay low.

Today’s blog post is part of our 2025 Inner Beauty series. You can always locate these posts through the top menu of the website. At the requests of so many of my readers and because these inner beauty posts are not about me or what I’m wearing, I’m sharing my husband’s landscape and nature photographs in this series. I hope you enjoy them as you read my thoughts on today’s inner beauty topic. A very limited number of his photos can now be purchased for download and for delivery in his Etsy Store. If you’d like to purchase a particular print seen on DFMD but not in his Etsy Store, just contact him through the link in his store. Today’s photos are from our trip to Alaska last spring.

I don’t want to overdramatize courage because more often than not the bravery we need is not that kind that sends a man into war or spurs a woman to protect her child from impending danger. Yes, you or I may need that fierce and ferocious brand of courage occasionally in life, heaven forbid. But it’s that more commonly required type of courage I want us to focus on today because, while the incidents that require us to buckle down and keep moving forward are indeed somewhat ordinary and familiar, the courageous woman who actually manages to do just that…is not common at all.

We all have to face hard things, some of us more than others. Take a moment to think about some of the hard things you have come up against in life. Don’t dwell on them, sister. This is not an invitation to wallow. But for the sake of settling into this discussion, take a cursory inventory of a few of the hardships that have made it difficult to get out of bed, put one foot in front of the other, much less get out in front of the thing and knock it down. When was the last time you just didn’t know for sure if you had what it took to press through something? (And remember, it may seem like a small thing now, but it may have looked like a giant at the time.)

And let’s face it. There may have been times in the past when we didn’t demonstrate courage at all. Instead, we held back, stayed silent, walked away, missed the opportunity, gave in to the enemy, let someone else do what we knew we should be doing. Does that sting? Sure it does. But sister, do not let those regrets weigh heavy on you. We all fall down occasionally. Every. Single. One of us. You are not alone in those moments of weakness. The beauty of uncommon courage is that it’s somewhat elusive, even to the strongest among us.

None of us demonstrate courage every single time we need to be brave. But I’ve discovered that one courageous moment often leads to another…and then another and another. Courage doesn’t just add up; it multiplies. When I decide to do something that I know I need to do, even though it scares me to death, and I actually follow through, I’m empowered to do another hard thing and another. And before long the hard things don’t seem quite as difficult or overwhelming. Soon I’m not just taking tenuous steps, but I’m moving forward with more energy and a renewed sense of purpose.

And sometimes that even means that I become freed from the bondage of a fear that has held me back in the past. Can you relate? Have you felt those shackles fall loose when you’ve dared to take one more step forward and then another? Can you look back and see how far you’ve come all because somewhere back there you decided to press on even when everything within you wanted to stay still…or run back?

Courage is beautiful because it often leads to better places, better things: success, freedom, healing, reconciliation, victory, even love. When my children used to get afraid of the hard things they had to do…or even just the awkward things of growing up, liking inviting someone out on a date or presenting a report in class…I would remind them that every good thing in life comes after something awkward and hard. Think about the very best things in your life: your marriage, your family, your home, your successes at work. All of those things required some guts somewhere along the way. At some point you had to suck it up and do the hard thing in order to make any of those things happen. Courage is necessary if we want to experience the joys of life.

But courage isn’t just beautiful because it helps us get to the better things in life. And it doesn’t just yield dividends in our own lives. Courage is beautiful because it has ripple effects, reaching into the lives of the people around us and, sometimes, even beyond to people we never meet or know. Courage inspires. It fortifies others who are facing the same giants, but it also lights the way for those who know that hard things are in their future, too. When an ordinary woman exhibits extraordinary courage it allows each and every one of us to hope that we would do the same in her shoes. We don’t know for sure that we would. But, we think to ourselves, if she can do this, maybe I can, too.

So courage is important…not just for the woman who needs to get out of bed and face the next hard thing. But also for the man sleeping next to her, for the kids sleeping down the hall, for the woman next door, for the coworkers who are watching, for the friends who are praying and for the patient who passes her on the way to her next appointment. The beauty of uncommon courage is that it shines like a beacon that helps others to find their way, too.

So how can we get that kind of courage? Where does it come from? Well, as I’ve intimated here, some of my courage comes from you and vice versa. We can encourage – or infuse one another with courage – with our words and with our example. Hopefully I’ve encouraged you a little here today.

But ultimately, I think our greatest courage comes from knowing that we do not face anything alone. Oh sure, it may feel or seem like we do. No one is in that dialysis chair with you. No one is raising those children with you. No one is riding in that ambulance with you. No one is facing that divorce with you. I get that. But while you may have to physically walk into a hard thing by yourself, you are not alone. The Lord is with you.

If you read through the story of Joseph in Genesis 37-50, the one thing that helped him to withstand hatred and slavery and abandonment and false accusations and one mistreatment after another is that “the Lord was with Joseph.” (Genesis 39:2,3,21,23) And over and over in the Bible the words “be strong and courageous” are followed closely by the words “the Lord your God is with you.”

God’s presence is a mighty thing. Not only is His companionship sweet and satisfying. But He’s the kind of friend you want to have in your corner. He’s strong and able. He’s wise and will share that wisdom with you generously, if you just ask. He’s loving and compassionate. He’s tender and gracious. He’s generous and willing to provide everything you need to get through your hard thing, if you just ask. He never sleeps or slumbers. You’re always on His mind and He loves you passionately. If someone is going to walk with you through this thing, you want it to be the Lord God.

If you need courage for something today, I encourage you to ask the Lord to provide it. You might want to begin by reading the scriptures I’m providing below in the Blessed for My Day portion of this post. But also simply say out loud, “Lord, I need your grace to make it. Help me please.” And He will give you an uncommon courage that will get you through to the other side…with beautiful results.

Thanks so much for joining me for this inner beauty post. You can always find all of the a Beauty that Doesn’t Fade with Age posts under the 2025 INNER BEAUTY SERIES tab in the top menu. In the Blessed for My Day section below this post, I’ve shared Scripture verses that support today’s post. I welcome your comments in the comments section. Just click on JOIN THE CONVERSATION below to add your comment or to read what others have to say.