By: Justin Dillenschneider, Director of Student Life
Week of January 24th, 2022
Fortitude can be defined as bravery when dealing with pain or difficulty over a long period of time. Fortitude is one of the 4 cardinal virtues and is often synonymous with our more modern term; courage. While we often confuse courage with brash bravery or strong action, fortitude more closely resembles a long-suffering attitude and disposition. Few among us can stand to be in pain for long, and much of modern society’s inventions are geared toward alleviating difficulty, stress, pain, and discomfort. We were created to rule over and subdue the earth, and certainly, our desire to help others flourish and reduce suffering is commendable. However, Christ was not spared from pain and suffering so that he could satisfy the penalty for sin: death and eternal separation from God. When difficulty and strife arise, our responses both immediate and over long periods of time show where we place our trust and who (or what) we look to for comfort.
Continue contemplating fortitude by looking at this week’s scripture reading from
Isaiah 53:7-9 CSB
“7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not open his mouth. 8 He was taken away because of oppression and judgment, and who considered his fate? For he was cut off from the land of the living; he was struck because of my people’s rebellion. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, but he was with a rich man at his death because he had done no violence and had not spoken deceitfully.”
We want to encourage you to have a conversation this week about the virtue of fortitude.
Consider these discussion prompts together:
- What tempts you to become timid?
- Where have you seen people fall into obstinance? Where are you tempted to do so?
- What are some ways you see Christ correcting obstinate or timid people in Scripture?
- How do we see the apostles and the early church modeling and celebrating fortitude?
Hymn to Sing Together: Our God Our Help in Ages Past