Courage is one of the most amazing human traits that we have. In spite of fear, in spite of resistance, in spite of all the setbacks we each undergo, we are still able to go deep inside and find a place of courage that allows us to move forward.

Sometimes we get stuck, but we have each other to rely on. When one of us runs out of courage there are others to lift us up and bring us forward with them. All we have to do is ask for help. Sometimes, we don’t even have to ask. Others readily lend us their support. Then, all we have to do is accept their love. All we have to do is fall back on their courage and let them show us the way.

Courage is trust in action. It is faith in ourselves, faith in those that love us, and most of all, faith in the love that the Great Mystery, The Divine, has for us. Faith carries us forward. When all we believe in disappoints us, when the well runs dry, we must make the leap to trust. When we do, we find that there is an invisible thread, an invisible connection that sustains us. There are many hands, both the hands of our family and friends, as well as invisible hands that buoy us up in difficult times. They are always present to give us the courage we need.

In times when our safety is threatened we may experience a tremendous rush of power and courage. Some people call it a rush of adrenaline. Our entire being surges with the desire to survive. The spiritual life we have cultivated is a part of our survival. Our spiritual consciousness, our spiritual connection helps us to move forward.

Courage is an inner fire. It is that ardor, that passion to survive, and more than survive, to live a good life. When we are in danger we become acutely aware of how much life means to us.

Courage often comes forward when we are called to display it on behalf of others. It is more difficult to be courageous in our own lives, than to find the courage to help those that we love. We can see their situation more clearly. We are not lost in a tunnel of doubt and despair. When others run out of courage, we can lend our courage and strength to them. We can inspire them to find their own inner strength. In that act of helping others we dispel the darkness in our own life. We find the courage that lives inside of us.

In those times when we cannot believe or trust, and harsh winds batter us, we have each other to carry us through the storm. Perhaps all we need to do is believe in a friend’s belief. We can try to trust their belief in us. If we can trust in another, if we can believe that they believe, we can find our way home to our own spiritual fire, to our own courage.

This is why we need each other. We are not destined to live as hermits separate from each other. The friend who stopped to help us back to our feet may have even been a perfect stranger before we fell down. It doesn’t matter. We are destined to be a community of souls each lending support to the other.

We are a spiritual community of light reaching back with one hand to pull our sister and brother up, and the one below us pulls the one below them up. As we reach up for strength there is someone to help us. And the one above us reaches out to another who is helping them. This is the power of courage.