Making of a Brave Man

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What makes a brave man? Am I brave? Are you Brave? Who decides if a man is brave or not? I ask this question because I recently rewatched the movie “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”. This movie is really impactful to me. It speaks to me. It tells us that we have to be present always. If we are not, “Life” will pass us by. 

Does being present make us brave? I believe it does. When we are present, we live life fully. We don’t wish our lives away. We grab life and tell it what we are going to do at that very moment. But there is more to being present than just being physically present.

In the movie, “Walter” spaces out quite a bit before he embarks on an adventure of trying to find a single person in the entire world. Talk about finding a needle in a haystack. I believe that “Walter” has to take a step at a time to find his bravery. It is a lot like what Heavenly Father talks to us about in the scriptures. We will learn the truth about Him precept upon precept. Isaiah 28:9-10 talks about this.

“Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts. For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:”   — ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭28:9-10‬ ‭KJV‬‬

What does that mean? I believe it means that every time we take a step toward Heavenly Father in Faith (Trust that He wants the best for us) He gives us another step and then another toward learning His true identity. When we learn His true identity, we learn our true identity.

“Walter” found his true identity when he continued to take leaps of faith and continued to take steps towards it. He had to jump into a helicopter that was lifting off the ground. Then, he had to jump into the ocean and fight off a shark. The list goes on and on. It speaks directly to the curiosity and courageous parts of our subconscious that craves adventure with God. We want to matter. 

We find meaning in life when we do what God created us to do. That requires us to be present, and take little leaps (sometimes outrageously gigantic leaps) with God. He will not leave us alone. He wants to be on this adventure with us. He craves that connection. So, will we heed the call and allow our Heavenly Dad to make us brave?

What now? Be present. Pray to God to ask to see others as He sees them. Think of some big audacious goal you’ve been putting off and commit now to start on it this week! 

By CT, Writing Team

Learning to be my authentic self

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Growing up I made agreements with myself that I was inadequate and unworthy of love. One of the biggest agreements I made, and didn’t realize until I was 42 years old, was that I was defective because I was quiet in social situations and felt really anxious about not knowing what to say to other people. In these situations I preferred to stay in the background and observe every little detail around me. 

Throughout my life I’ve had a few close friendships. During my teenage school years I distinctly remember noticing how the kids with really fun and outgoing personalities were always well liked by everyone at school and church, including by adults. The message I told myself was that if I was outgoing and talkative then people would like me and I would have lots of friends. Later in high school I was labeled a snob because I was quiet. Again this reinforced the message that being quiet was a bad thing. 

Soon after getting married, my wife told me how some of her friends had asked her why I never talked much when they first met me. The narrative was again reinforced that clearly being quiet was bad if my wife’s friends were questioning her about it. 

This agreement has even crept into my career. Anytime I’ve been passed over for promotions or job opportunities the narrative that  played in my head said it was because I was not outgoing and talkative enough.  

I’ve tried many times over the years to fit in and be more outgoing like “normal” people but it has never worked for me. All I ever received was a ton of anxiety as I tried to be anything but quiet which made me even more quiet and reinforced my agreement that I was clearly defective because I was unable to change. 

About 2 years ago, my wife and I were in the middle of a meeting with our therapist when he mentioned something about me being introverted. As soon as he said it my throat tightened up and my palms got really sweaty. He could tell this made me feel really uncomfortable and he said, “I don’t know why you can’t own being introverted.” 

He then shared the following quote by Patricia T. Holland, Author and Speaker, that has been very impactful to me:


“God needs us as we are, as we are growing to become. He has intentionally made us different from one another so that even with our imperfections we can fulfill his purposes. My greatest misery comes when I feel I have to fit what others are doing, or what I think others expect of me. I am most happy when I am comfortable being me and trying to do what God and I expect me to be.

I have learned through several fatiguing failures that you can’t have joy in being bubbly if you are not a bubbly person. It is a contradiction in terms. I have given up seeing myself as a flawed person because my energy level is lower than someone else’s, and I don’t talk as much as they do, nor as fast. Giving this up has freed me to embrace and rejoice in my own manner and personality in the measure of my creation.

…Somewhere, somehow the Lord blipped the message onto my screen that my personality was created to fit precisely the mission and talents he gave me… Miraculously, I have found that I have untold abundant sources of energy to be myself. But the moment I indulge in imitation of my neighbor, I feel fractured and fatigued and find myself forever swimming upstream. When we frustrate God’s plan for us, we deprive this world and God’s kingdom of our unique contributions and a serious schism settles in our soul. God never gave us any task beyond our ability to accomplish it. We just have to be willing to do it our own way. We will always have enough resources for being who we are and what we can become…”


That day in our therapist’s office changed me and was the catalyst for breaking this agreement I’ve had my entire life. Nobody had ever given me permission to own being introverted and I started to see that maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing after all. For the first time in my life, I started to feel that maybe I really wasn’t defective and that I’m okay being me.

What now?  What truths about yourself have you rejected because you perceived them in the wrong light?  Write them down and ponder “How can I more lovingly accept myself as I am?”

By Seth, Writing Team

Free and Found

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I have a blackboard at home where I keep some of my most effective weapons in my war against evil - especially addiction. Toward the top is this sentence, "’Lost and Bound’ looks and feels like ‘Free and Found’ - until it doesn't." It’s another way of saying that sometimes we act out because we have become convinced that it’s liberating and natural, but it’s just the opposite. 

It reminds me how powerful the lies in my head are. They tell me that acting out will free me from my suffering and that it's just part of who I am. These lies have power because they are partly true. Indulging does free me from my suffering and it is human.

The problem is that it’s only true to a point. Indulging only hides and postpones my suffering and it’s emotionally and spiritually unnatural. Afterward, I don't need anyone to tell me that I'm less ‘Free and Found’. I’m just more ‘Lost and Bound’.

I have another sentence on my blackboard that reads, “Relax into Jesus. He’ll make you better, but you’ll always be enough.” If I'm seeking lasting, soul-lifting, powerful ‘Free and Found’, I’ve learned that I have one place to look: My Jesus. He frees me from suffering. He makes me who I really am.

So, to apply these powerful weapons, I surrender to Jesus. I reconnect with Him, I thank Him, I worship Him, I study Him, and I share Him. This can be hard because I don't want to rely on someone else. I want to do it myself. I want to be independent. It hurts and feels awkward almost every time I surrender to Him. It does, though, get easier and more natural and the rewards leave me rejoicing and hugging and serving and sharing. 

Overcoming addiction requires a lot of weapons and tools, but for me, this is the elephant gun and ultimately, the nuclear option.

“Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price.
Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food.
Isaiah 55:1-2

What now? 
Join me in looking for your true self and for your freedom in Jesus where they can be found. Invite Almighty Dad on a walk. See Him in the sunrise. Vent to Him in the car. Call out His name in your weakness and open your heart to His work in you.

By Ty, Writing Team