Courage, the Most Important Virtue

"Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point, which means at the point of highest reality."  C.S. Lewis in Screwtape Letters

A few weeks ago, John Stonestreet (of the Chuck Colson Center and Summit Ministries) shared with our faculty. As John helped us better understand biblical worldview, he landed on the importance of courage in the lives of our children.

Here are a few of Stonestreet's comments:
* Being human means to be courageous, not just know truth but courageous to use it.
* To raise children to make right decisions and not just know the truth requires courage; "It is by his deeds that a lad makes himself known if his conduct is pure and right" (Proverbs 20:11).
* In the classic virtues, courage allowed the others to exist.
* Children want to be courageous and we offer them video games.
* A biblical worldview makes a right decision when in a tough spot, which takes courage.
* A biblical worldview is not just thought out but is lived out.
* A biblical worldview is not primarily expressed but embodied.

Stonestreet said that, "Dreams do not determine destiny; decisions determine destiny." It is courage that moves dreams and beliefs to decisions and action.

Reepicheep helps Eustace learn courage.

How do we create courage?  

Stonestreet suggests:
* Be aware that everything we do is forming children's souls; all education is worldview shaping.
* Teach habits. He quotes Aristotle: "So it is a matter of no little importance what sort of habits we form from the earliest age--it makes a vast difference, or rather all the difference in the world."
* Shift from entitlement to responsibility.
* Teach children to leave things better than they found them.
* Give children words to use in tough moments.

From the Voyage of the Dawn Treader, John explained how we can create courage in our children. In Dawn Treader, Eustace is a boy with no "chest," a boy who has not trained his emotions and is a victim of his feelings. He knows about ships but has never been on one.  He has never been taught about dragons!

Stonestreet says that children should know two things about dragons:
1. They exist.
2. They can be beaten.

In Dawn Treader, help comes from an unlikely source. Reepicheep, the mouse, has courage. He mentors Eustace. He helps Eustace by stripping away the dragon flesh and shows that Eustace has grown a chest.We need to mentor our children to defeat dragons. And, celebrate their courage.

Stonestreet says that our children must:
1. Know what is true and good (not just right from wrong).
2. Practice what is true and good (weight lifters don't get strong without the practice of lifting weights).
3. Learn and practice repentance, a way to actively follow Jesus with courage instead of being passive.

John Stonestreet

We need to teach our children how to defeat dragons. We need to put them on boats and teach courage so they can put ideas into action.

Thanks to John Stonestreet for his thoughts.

John suggested these sites to help us:
Center for Parent/Youth Understanding
Summit Ministries
Breakpoint

The Day After Thanksgiving

"Day After Thanksgiving"

"Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all the others." Cicero

Virtues in our children develop best when thankfulness is a part of everyday life. Hundreds of years ago, Cicero thought that gratitude was the greatest virtue and that other qualities, like courage, begin with gratitude. Recent work by Michael Zigarelli discovered the same thing. In his study of five thousand Christians, Zigarelli found that a mindset of gratitude is by far the top factor in developing a Christ-like character (Regent Business Review, Issue 17).

How does gratitude develop the virtue of courage? As a child thinks about his blessings and expresses gratitude, the focus goes from self to the Giver of the blessings. As he considers the Giver more and more, he learns to trust more, knowing that God is intimately involved in his life. He learns to love God and people, develops passions, and holds loosely his time and treasures since they are gifts to him, anyway. Considering the blessings gracefully poured on his life helps him give his life to something larger and to Someone who has great plans for him. Gratitude helps him know his frailties don’t matter when it is God who empowers him, guides him, and rescues him.

As we model gratitude every day and help our children see how deeply they are blessed, courage is only one of the virtues that will grow in their lives. Considering God’s goodness and expressing thankfulness to Him brings our children to a place of joy and freedom to become who they are meant to be. Courage begins with gratitude not only on Thanksgiving, but the day after and every day following. How can we build gratitude into our lives so our children are thankful people?