Hobbit Habit #2: Courage Amidst Adversity
Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage, like any virtue, becomes alive when it is put to the test by its opposite pole, cowardice. One cannot be courageous in front of a flying butterfly, but one practice courage in front of flying bullets. The courageous man feels fear, but does not let his fear cripple him. Sometimes courage takes form of a coward moving forward the line of battle.
The Hobbits in the Lord of the Rings are small and peaceful folks. They are not bread for battle. They live their life safely in the Shire.
It takes greater courage for Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin to in taking the mission of destroying the One Ring than anyone in the Fellowship. They not only lack in size but also lack in the skill of fighting. They all have a reason to bail out, for it was suicide on their part. How could four small Hobbits fight against orcs, dragons and Sauron himself?
But the four did not give in to cowardice. They were afraid the whole time, but they pushed through. They have faced giants, literally, with only a knife and a big heart. And in the end, their knives and a big hearts defeated the giants of giants, Sauron
We humans are a fearful bunch. That is why the Scriptures are filled of “Be not afraid” passages. God knows we are fearful. God knows we are cowards. And that is why there is “grace
Like the Hobbits, we all have our giants to face. Our life might look like the Lord of the Rings Trilogy, fighting one battle to the next. We might feel the darkness looming in. We are tempted to despair. Is there hope for victory in all of these adversities
The Hobbits never gave up. And there were a lot of situations that they could have. How many times they were captured by the enemy? How many times they were in the brink of death? But they fought. Sometimes they fought even though they knew that it was a no win scenario. The Hobbits had no plans of dying like cowards.
In the end, the Hobbits finished what they set out to do. They were victorious. They won not because of their great strength nor fighting skills. They won because they did not quit. They won because even when the odds were against them, they hanged on.
“Courage is fear holding on a minute longer.” - George S. Patton
So how can we be courageous
“There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.” - 1 John 4:18
Love is the source of our courage. To know that God loves us is the supreme reason for our courage, for if God is with us, who is against us? To choose faithfulness to God is to choose victory. No matter what adversities comes to us, even if death is nearing, it does not have the final word. Death has been defeated by the Resurrection. And we too shall rise in Christ in this life and in the next if we choose Him
Our love for our neighbor is also a source of courage. When we learn to put them before us, we are prepared to sacrifice our very self for their sake. We are ready to carry their crosses with them. We are ready to make risks for them
When we let go of our selfishness we let go of our fear. For in the center of fear is ourselves. We are afraid to lose ourselves. And we will do all things necessary to protect it. And in saving ourselves, we lose our lives. A coward lives in his small protected world. He has cut himself from the rest of the world. A coward’s life is a boring life.
Victory belongs to the lovingly courageous people. It takes a lot of courage to love. But in having the courage to love we shall find life itself. Christ Himself.
For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.
Written By Daxx Bondoc
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