I have been in a season of waiting for years. Waiting for the Lord to move miraculously in an area that matters deeply to me (my marriage) has been hard, challenging, and wonderful. As a new twist in the waiting hits, I was reminded that Psalm 27 tells me to be of good courage as I wait.
This will be a bit raw and intimate, but I feel led to share my journaling with you today.
What Does It Mean To Be of Good Courage?
Psalm 27:14 says, “Wait on the Lord, be of good courage.” What does that mean? How can you have courage when waiting? It feels confusing.
What is Psalm 27:14 about? Maybe I need to look at these wait on the Lord verses in context…
Full chapter Psalm 27:1-14 NKJV
:1 Be of Good Courage Means Not Being Afraid
“The Lord is my light and my salvation;
Whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the strength of my life;
Of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psalm 27:1 NKJV)
The Lord is my light – when darkness closes in. He is my salvation, rather than my words or actions. God is the strength of my life, not my health or relationship or the community or the ways I serve. The Lord!
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A Prayer To Fight Fear
Lord, You are my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? Not the future. Not the hardships.
You save me.
You rescue me from the darkness when it closes in!
The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid!?
I won’t be afraid of my spouse making unwise choices. My own faults and failures will not drive me to fear or anxiety!
Lord, You don’t just give me strength, YOU are my strength. Fear and dread have no place in that equation.
:2-3 Be Confident That He Fights Your Battles
“2 When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh,
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell.
3 Though an army may encamp against me,
My heart shall not fear;
Though war may rise against me,
In this I will be confident.“
What does the Bible say about being of good courage? Surprisingly, it doesn’t promise courage will come naturally or that life will be easy.
Waiting on the Lord doesn’t mean a life of peace or comfort.
While I wait on the Lord, the wicked come against me. While I wait on the Lord, enemies and foes attack. But also, while I am waiting, the Lord is my salvation and strength. He causes those who come against me to stumble and fall! He fights for me. The Lord defends me.
Related Post: 3 Ways To Fight Your Battles Victoriously
While I Wait, War Rages
In the waiting time, it can feel like war is raging all around. Though an actual army is not physically encamping against me, it seems like everything that could go wrong is going wrong.
- The refrigerator starts to leak, the stove goes out, and the heater in the car dies just as cold weather hits.
- School fees pile up, unexpected medical bills arrive and your savings account is empty.
- Communication in marriage feels like verbal sparing, the kids are spiraling emotionally, and you are battling fear and anxiety over all the things.
If one more thing goes wrong, I feel as if I will go down and never have the strength to get back up.
All the while I am waiting on the Lord, remaining in His Word, resting in prayer and praise, until He gives the Word.
Waiting through the battle. Waiting while the enemy laughs at my inactivity.
Being Of Good Courage Means My Heart Will Not Fear
When fear begins to rise in me, I remind myself of the strength He has given me in the past and the promises He has made to me now.
When I feel worried that His timing may be late or that I misunderstood His command to wait, I trust His heart. The Lord gives me light and salvation and whispers to me, “Fear not, for I am with thee.”
As the war rages all around me, I will, like King David, remain confident in the Lord. He is my strength. He is my salvation. I can wait because He is faithful and trustworthy.
:4 Be Of Good Courage In His Presence
“4 One thing I have desired of the Lord,
That will I seek:
That I may dwell in the house of the Lord
All the days of my life,
To behold the beauty of the Lord,
And to inquire in His temple.“
Some of the strength to wait on the Lord comes from being near the Lord. We can have courage (be of good courage) when He is present. I imagine it like facing an enemy when your large, muscular friend is by your side. The enemy may be scary, but your friend is more intimidating. You have the confidence to stand your ground when you are not alone.
While it is true that God is everywhere, Omni-Present, there are certain places where He feels more present. There are certain places where we are sure to hear from Him, sure to sense Him, and sure to feel His peace.
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Wait On The Lord In His Temple
At the time, David and any other Israelite would have associated the presence of God with His temple. He dwelled there in a thick cloud that remained in the Holy of Holies. To inquire of the Lord, you would have gone to the temple and spoken to the priests.
Today, we who have believed in the name of Jesus, have the Holy Spirit within us. We are the temple of God!
We have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ so that we can inquire of the Lord at any time.
Yes, we are the temple of God. However, there are still places and settings where we feel Him more fully. The church is one of those places for me. A prayer meeting is another. I desire to be in those environments. They give me strength, filling my soul with strength to face the enemy.
This be of good courage verse really points to the need to seek His presence more.
:5-6 He Will Hide You To Strengthen Your Courage
“5 For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock.“
Through seasons of waiting, we are not immune from the attacks of the enemy. Not only will we face fighting within (fear, and doubt about the waiting itself), but we will also face attacks from without.
There is a real enemy who longs to see us lose our faith, ruin our testimony, and take as many people down with us as possible on the way. He will add attack after attack trying to find our weaknesses, trying to make us crack, trying to take us out of the fight for the Kingdom of God.
This passage about waiting on the Lord is a beautiful promise that we can trust God. He will hide us when we are in trouble. It reminds me of Psalm 91
Hide Behind The Lord
“He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High
Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;
My God, in Him I will trust.” (Psalm 91:1-2 NKJV)
Sometimes we need a moment away from the battle. In those moments, He will hide us under His shadow. He has a secret place where the enemy may not trespass and we can ask to hide there to rest. Crazy. It is crazy to associate the need to rest with waiting, but it is true.
Are you weary? Does it feel like if one more thing goes wrong you will crack? How long have you been waiting?
He is your light, your salvation, your strength. He does cause the enemy to stumble and fall. However, even seeing the enemy fall, knowing God is the strength you need, as the next army lines up to take aim at you, it can feel overwhelming.
Ask Him for a season of rest. Hide in Him. He is bigger than the enemy. He longs to hide you when you are weary. The enemy has no authority over you and hiding in Your Father is a good reminder for that snake.
How Does He Hide You?
When you choose to abide in Him, focus your mind on Him, and trust in Him, rather than all the things around you, you are safely hidden in Him no matter what the enemy does. He hides you with peace of mind.
Psalm 27:5 shows two ways God hides us when we abide in Him.
In the Secret Place
The secret place implies safety and rest where the enemy can not see you, can’t find you, or reach you with his attacks. This is a place that is completely safe. When you are hidden in the secret place of the Lord, He can refresh you and restore you in Him.
High Upon a Rock
The second place he hides you is high upon a rock. This doesn’t sound like a hiding place, but it is still a place of rest. Think for a moment about the limitations of the enemy. God created the world where the enemy wages war against HIS children. The Lord knows every rock, mountain, valley, and sea. This is God’s world!
When He is hiding you on a rock, He places you out of reach from the enemy. Yes, the enemy can see you but can’t get to you. There is still rest in this place. It is like hiding in plain sight. I imagine it enrages the enemy, which is an added bonus!
:6 Be Of Good Courage I Have Overcome The World
“6 And now my head shall be lifted up above my enemies all around me;
Therefore I will offer sacrifices of joy in His Tabernacle;
I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the Lord.“
Staying with the theme of hiding in plain sight, verse 6 speaks about our head being above the enemy. That is still a position of being out of his reach. The Lord sets us higher than the enemy, lifting up our heads so we are protected from the attacks all around.
There is an idea here of keeping our mind fixed on the Lord, our thoughts on Him rather than the wars and enemies around us on that lower level. This is still a position of resting in the Lord.
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How To Be of Good Courage While Waiting on The Lord Share on XJesus Overcame The World
This idea of lifting up our heads reminds me of Jesus’ words in John 16:33.
“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33 NIV)
Jesus defeated sin and death. He spent a lifetime waiting to bring us salvation and freedom. In that loving act, Jesus gave us everything we need to be of good courage. He gave us hope that this life is not the end.
Hope helps us take heart or be of good courage! Hope gives us the strength to wait for Him to move and work.
We know God kept Jesus’ head lifted high above the enemy while on earth. His example helps us believe God will do the same for us!
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How can we keep our heads above our enemies?
Offering the sacrifices of joy.
That sounds hard. We are waiting on the Lord. There is a war raging all around us. The battle has been so intense we have needed to hide in the Lord. From that place, He says to offer joy?
A Sacrifice of Joy
It makes me think of James 1:2-8 where we are to count it all joy, knowing that the trials we face help us grow up more in His image. The trials we face, put our faith on display, drawing others to Him. When we face them with joy, a sacrifice of joy, we show our faith and shine the light of Christ.
That sacrifice of joy somehow keeps our heads lifted high.
There is another idea implied here. If your head is dropped down, you may be dealing with fear or even guilt and shame. Finding joy in the Lord amidst the trials that come while waiting is a battle strategy to fight those things!
Joy may feel like a sacrifice to start, but as it builds, the benefits far outweigh any struggles to settle into its rhythm.
Sing To Be Strong and Courageous
I love that David has to repeat the need to sing to himself. He is a musical person, so if even a musical person needs to be reminded to sing through trials we all have hope.
I will sing, yes, sing praises to the Lord!
Singing to the Lord helps keep our eyes fixed on Him in the midst of trials and chaos. Singing does something to our state of mind as well, bringing hope, joy, and peace regardless of what is going on around us!
As we face the enemy, while we wait on the Lord, we find joy more easily if we praise the Lord.
- Remember who He is.
- Remember what He’s done in the past.
- Remind yourself of His character.
Fix your eyes on Him through song whether you can sing beautifully or not.
Singing helps us live out the phrase, wait on the Lord be of good courage!
Related Post: The Blessing of Praising God During Difficult Times: Stillness
:7-10 Seek The Lord For Courage and Strength
“7 Hear, O Lord, when I cry with my voice!
Have mercy also upon me, and answer me.
8 When You said, “Seek My face,”
My heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”
9 Do not hide Your face from me;
Do not turn Your servant away in anger;
You have been my help;
Do not leave me nor forsake me,
O God of my salvation.
10 When my father and my mother forsake me,
Then the Lord will take care of me.”
Pray. Cry out in desperation to the Lord for His mercy as you wait.
Seek His face and keep seeking. There is a promise made throughout Scripture that when you seek Him with your whole heart He will be found by you!
Turning Back After Wandering
I wonder if David got tired of waiting and took things into His own hands. Maybe that’s why he is crying out in desperation. Maybe that’s what prompted him to seek God’s face. He is nervous that the Lord may be angry and turn away from Him. That feels familiar.
Sweet Father, How many times have I turned away? Instead of waiting, like You said, I chose my own path. I decided to take some course of action that felt logical, only to fall flat on my face. In those moments, I turn back, crying out to You, seeking Your face… Nervous You will not be there because I disobeyed… Nervous You will be angry with me and turn away Your face.
Seek And You Will Find
“Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.” (Matthew 7:7 ESV)
Scripture tells us to seek the Lord. The original language in Matthew’s letter means we are to seek and keep seeking. David is almost trying to hold the Lord to His promise that if we seek Him He will be found. He is declaring that he will seek and keep seeking.
You can feel the desperation to get back into the presence of the Lord, to feel His presence, to see His face, to feel His peace in the waiting.
David reminds himself that the Lord has been faithful. We know this about the Lord, right?
- The Lord will never leave us or forsake us.
- He is always our salvation.
- Even when our parents (who should love us unconditionally and offer support through every season) forsake us, the Lord never will.
Now that my parents have gone ahead of me to heaven, I appreciate this promise even more. The Lord will take care of me like my parents would if they were still here.
:11 Waiting Time Is Learning Time
“11 Teach me Your way, O Lord,
And lead me in a smooth path, because of my enemies.“
Waiting time is not wasted time. Years after a preacher said that phrase it still echoes through my mind when I am waiting on hard things.
The Lord teaches us so much in the waiting seasons about how to:
- Follow Him.
- Grow in faith to trust Him more.
- Be still while we wait for Him.
When we are waiting for Jesus to move in a certain way, we must shift our mindset. Instead of waiting FOR Him, we need to wait IN Him, WITH Him. Waiting IN Jesus looks like learning, growing, resting, and hoping until the appointed time.
A Smooth Path
I love that David asks for a smooth path while under attack. Earlier we saw that the king was keeping his eyes fixed on the Lord, on things above. I picture him, almost walking with his eyes fixed skyward as he faces an army. He is watching the Lord fight this battle, all the while, he needs to watch where he steps. The request to make his path smooth is so that David can keep his eyes fixed above and not trip and fall. Beautiful.
The Lord is faithful. When we are following after Him, obeying the command to fix our eyes on Him, it is not selfish to ask the Lord to smooth out the path we are walking on. We need to be sure there won’t be roots to trip over or rocks waiting to hurt our feet. We need to know it is safe to keep looking at HIM while we walk the path.
Lord, it feels like there are a million things that will trip me up as I walk this path of waiting in You. I am trying to keep my eyes fixed on You, but I am afraid I will miss something and fall. Please make my path smooth.
:12 Trust God’s Protection To Be of Good Courage
“12 Do not deliver me to the will of my adversaries;
For false witnesses have risen against me,
And such as breathe out violence.“
While waiting it can feel like the Lord doesn’t hear us, or doesn’t see the enemy approaching. Other times, the enemy claims to also belong to the Lord at times, and we wonder whose side God is on.
When my adversaries come against me, either directly in war formation or indirectly, with false witnesses and slander, I need to know God has my back.
I am waiting on Him, not moving forward, not fighting back, not stooping to their level. Will I pay for that? Will I look like a fool in the end? What will the point have been, in all this waiting, if in the end, things fail?
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A Prayer For Protection
Holy Spirit, the enemy is whispering lies, slandering my good name, ruining my reputation. Do you see this, Lord? What if it’s all for nothing?
You said to wait, so I haven’t acted on the urgest to defend myself and fight back and leave this awful situation. Well, actually, I keep messing up in that regard. I keep trying my own way. Forgive me. Don’t turn away from me, please. Don’t take Your presence from me. I can’t do this without You.
I know You said to wait. You are my salvation, my light, my strength. I need You to fight for me. Do you see the battle? Don’t let the enemy win.
Some days it feels like the enemy is in front of me, help me remember that the real enemy is not flesh and blood. Remind me to fight the right battle in prayer while I wait for You will win the war and change the situation in Your favor, please.
:13 Believe You Will See the Goodness of the Lord
“13 I would have lost heart, unless I had believed
That I would see the goodness of the Lord
In the land of the living.“
Waiting is hard. I lose heart a hundred times a day in some seasons. What helps us to wait on the Lord and be of good courage?
- Believing I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.
- Believing His goodness will happen in my earthly life.
- Knowing that an abundant life, filled with all the blessings of the Lord can happen here and now.
While we are waiting, the Lord is growing our faith, growing Spiritual fruit into our hearts, and teaching us how to see the world through His eyes.
The Goodness of God
In the waiting time, we are learning what true goodness and abundance look like. God isn’t promising us a comfortable life or riches and wealth (though there is nothing wrong with that) as much as He is promising us hope and joy, a peace that passes understanding, and the blessing of living in His presence.
The goodness of the Lord is about a kind of provision and protection that we can’t appreciate until we have gone through waiting seasons. The goodness of the Lord is so much sweeter for the waiting time. It feels like goodness, even when there are attacks.
A Different Way To See Life
The difference is what lens we look at life through. Do we view life as moving from one trial to another or will we choose to see life as moving from glory to glory? Instead of focusing on the burdens and struggles, we must choose to focus on watching the Lord show off His glory as He fights the battles.
It is beautiful to think in terms of glory instead of burden!
:14 Wait on The Lord Be of Good Courage
“14 Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;
Wait, I say, on the Lord!”
- Wait
- Stay
- Remain
- Until an appointed time…
- Until something happens…
Spurgeon is one of my favorite theologians to pull quotes from. This is one of many be strong and courageous quotes that help us focus on waiting in the Lord
“Wait… at His door with prayer, at His feet with humility, at His table with service, at His window with expectation.” (Spurgeon)
Be Of Good Courage With The Lord’s Strength
- Take courage in God (who is my strength)
- Allow His courage to fill you.
Let the Lord strengthen my heart while I wait on Him… in Him… for Him… until He says move… until He shifts the situation…
“Wait like a: begger waits for a handout from the rich, student waits to be taught, servant waits on his master, traveler waits for directions, child waits upon his parents…” (Trapp)
What Is The Meaning of Psalm 27:14 Be Of Good Courage?
Let me draw out the main points to summarize the be of good courage meaning we see in Psalm 27:14.
- God is our salvation
- So we can have courage and not be afraid
- He gives us His strength
- When battles come have courage because He fights for us, through us
- His presence is findable
- Be where He is to have courage
- Keep your eyes on Him
- Ask Him for help not to fall
- Ask Him to hide you when it’s too hard
- Be where He is to have courage
- He has overcome the word
- Remember Jesus already won
- Offer a sacrifice of joy to have courage
- Sing praise through the battle – don’t wait until it’s over!
- Seek His face, to stay in His presence courageously
- Hold Him to His promises
- Remember His faithfulness
- Ask for a smooth path
- Talk to God about the battle and the courage you need.
- Trust that He protects you
- Remember who the real enemy is
- Look for God’s goodness to take courage
- Don’t look at trials as burdens but as a chance to see God’s glory proved
Other Bible Verses About Courage and Strength
David is telling us that we can be of good courage even when waiting on the Lord through trials. He is reassuring himself in the midst of his own battles, but it translates to us today.
I wonder if he was meditating on some Old Testament Bible verse about courage and strength? What would have been relevant in his lifetime?
Deuteronomy 31:6 Be Strong and of Good Courage
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.” (Deuteronomy 31:6 NIV)
This would have been a passage every god-fearing man of David’s day would have memorized. When he faced battles, when he waited years for God’s promises to be fulfilled, this would replay through his mind.
Waiting on the Lord is tough, but remembering God’s promises keeps us going in the waiting times!
Joshua 1:9 Be Strong and Do Not Be Afraid
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9 NIV)
As David hid in caves and fought battles against his own people I wonder if the life of Joshua played through his mind. Joshua was to take over for Moses, a great man of God. He was young and strong, but grieving and scared, much like David.
I can feel the comfort coming from these words. Be strong and courageous. Don’t just muster that feeling up, but feel confident in the strength of the Lord within you! The Lord will be with you, wherever you go! As you fight impossible battles, as you doubt and face attacks within and without, you are not alone!
Joshua 1:9 Summary/Lesson
I wonder if David drew his wait on the Lord meaning from Joshua 1:9 lessons taught by Ruth and Naomi? Were they still alive when he was young? Had they passed down stories of God’s faithfulness?
Had David ever sat on the lap of Boaz and heard about the life of Joshua? Had he been told the stories of the Israelites walking around the wall of Jericho and how the spies were saved because of Rahab? They waited, she waited, and God was faithful to them all!
I wonder if these things helped grow his faith and courage through the seasons of waiting in his life.
Hebrews 6:18-20
Hebrews 6:18-20 also gives us some insight into what David believed about waiting on the Lord and being of good courage.
“In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us.
This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which enters within the veil, where Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:18-20 NASB)
This is something that David would have known and believed to the core of his soul! God can not live and He never changes!
- His purpose remains the same forever.
- His oath is unbreakable.
What is that purpose? To bring His will, His kingdom, and His way. God will win this war!
What is His oath? That those who believe in the name of Jesus will be saved.
We can wait with courage because those things are always true! David would have known of God’s purpose and would have lived in hope of the coming savior!
We can wait on the Lord and be of good courage in the same way!
Will You Wait on The Lord and Be of Good Courage With Me?
Today I am waiting on the Lord. Today I am striving to be of good courage.
I am keeping my eyes fixed on Him, praying He makes the path smooth so I won’t fall.
When the battle is overwhelming I am praising Him louder than the doubt and fear.
As the darkness closes in, I remember that He is my light and my salvation.
When I feel weary, I run into the secret place of His tabernacle and ask Him to hide me and restore me for the next round of attacks.
Through it all, I am intentionally looking for and praising Him for all the ways He shows the Goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. (Yesterday it was a fog that felt like the most majestic cloud to walk through.)
Will you wait in Him?
Will you be of good courage, taking His strength on as your own and letting Him fight the battle for you?
in HIS love,
Tiffany of Hope Joy in Christ inspires Christian Women to grow in faith, live out Biblical Marriage Principles and raise Godly Children. Join the Wives Only Facebook Group here or keep up with her through Pinterest.
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