How to Have Uncommon Courage - Daily Hope with Rick Warren - April 4, 2017

How to Have Uncommon Courage
By Rick Warren

“Stand up for me against world opinion and I’ll stand up for you before my Father in heaven” (Matthew 10:32 MSG).

In a world full of ideas and beliefs that go against God’s Word, God wants you to have an uncommon courage and stand up for what you know is true and right. Everyone else is speaking up and telling you their worldview every day. Why shouldn’t you stand up for what you believe?

To stand courageously, you have to know what God says is the truth and what the world believes. This is called a worldview — the perspective on which you base your beliefs. Every person uses a different filter through which they see and understand the world. We may all be looking at the same event, but we will see it differently because of our conflicting worldviews.

Your worldview includes how you see God, yourself, others, the past, the present, the future, money, time, good, and evil. It influences everything in your life. Every time you make a decision, you access the worldview database in your mind and decide that, because you believe this, this is what you’re going to do. Your worldview influences every choice you make.

Here’s the problem: You are profoundly influenced by the worldviews of others. Every time you have a conversation, a worldview is being communicated. You are influenced by the worldviews of your parents, friends, an advertisement, or a newspaper article. Nothing is fair and balanced, because everyone has a worldview.

It is absolutely crucial, then, that you base your worldview on God’s Word, which is the only truth.

One national survey found that 62 percent of Americans claimed they are “deeply spiritual.” When asked how that spirituality affects their decision making, 31 percent said they make moral choices based on “what feels right and comfortable,” 18 percent on “whatever is best for me,” 14 percent on “whatever causes the least conflict with others,” and only 16 percent on “what God’s Word says.”

What does that mean? It means most Christians have a non-Christian worldview. You may be a Christian and headed for Heaven, but you can also have a non-Christian worldview because you’ve based it on what you’ve learned from the world and not from the Word.

Why is it important to stand up and speak the truth? Matthew 10:32-33 says, “Stand up for me against world opinion and I’ll stand up for you before my Father in heaven. If you turn tail and run, do you think I’ll cover for you?” (MSG).

God is telling you to make a stand for his truth. Taking that kind of stand requires an uncommon courage that is only available through the knowledge and understanding of God’s Word.

Play today’s audio teaching from Pastor Rick >>

Talk It Over

• What worldview do you think people would say you have?
• In what ways did your worldview affect decisions you made today?
• How is your biblical knowledge helping you take a stand for God’s truth?

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This devotional © 2017 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission.

You can also listen to Rick Warren on OnePlace.com.