There have been reams of material written and also verbally expressed down through the ages concerning courage and courageous acts. Some of these accounts are very deeply inspiring and motivating. Many women have shown great courage at times.
To have courage is a very commendable trait. However, for courage to endure, especially in times of adversity, it must continue to be strengthened with fortitude. These attributes go hand in hand.
Fortitude, according to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is strength that enables one to meet danger, or bear pain or adversity with courage
There are times when women are faced with dire circumstances which are beyond their control and life becomes very difficult for them. In their sorrow and grief they are sometimes forced to make tough but necessary decisions that require courage and fortitude.
Such was the case for Naomi (we read of her struggles in the book of Ruth), who with her husband, Elimelech, and her two sons, Mahlon and Chilion, had moved from Bethlehem-Judah to the country of Moab to escape a famine in the homeland.
In the course of time, while living in Moab, Naomi’s husband Elimelech died and she was left a widow with two sons. Her sons married Moabite women, Orpah and Ruth. Later on, both Mahlon and Chilion died (Ruth 1:1–5). What a shock it must have been for Naomi to lose all three members of her immediate family in such a short period of time—about ten years (v. 4). So with courage and fortitude, Naomi had to make some very tough decisions concerning her future. The only family members she had left there in Moab were her two daughters-in-law, Ruth and Orpah—now widows themselves—with whom she apparently had a very close relationship. These two ladies loved Naomi so much that they wept at the very thought of parting from her as she made her journey back to the land of Judah (She had heard that the Lord was again providing grain—bread—for His people there). Naomi implored Orpah and Ruth to return to their gods and their people in Moab but they wept all the more. Finally Orpah sadly turned back toward Moab, but Ruth clung to Naomi and prevailed through her impassioned plea to continue on with her mother-in-law. “But Ruth said: ‘Entreat me not to leave you, or to turn back from following after you; for wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you lodge, I will lodge; your people shall be my people, and your God, my God. Where you die, I will die, and there will I be buried. The Lord do so to me, and more also, if anything but death parts you and me’” (Ruth 1:16–17). Here again is another example of courage and fortitude. Ruth was determined to go with Naomi to seek the true God of Israel—leaving her former gods and her people behind—to serve God and begin a new way of life in a strange land. So Naomi relented and allowed her to continue on with her to the land of Judah (v. 18).
We pick up the story in verse 19: “Now the two of them went until they came to Bethlehem. And it happened, when they had come to Bethlehem, that all the city was excited because of them; and the women said, ‘Is this Naomi?’” Then Naomi could not contain her grief and anguish any longer. “But she said to them, ‘Do not call me Naomi [pleasant]; call me Mara [bitter], for the Almighty has dealt very bitterly with me’” (v. 20). “I went out full, and the Lord has brought me home again empty. Why do you call me Naomi, since the Lord has testified against me, and the Almighty has afflicted me?” (v. 21).
This is not to say that Naomi was angry at God, nor bitter toward Him, since she was apparently a God-fearing woman. She was just sorely lamenting the fact that her situation was a bitterness to her soul and very grievous to her heart. She was clearly struggling to fight through the pain and suffering with courage and fortitude.
So these two brave women, Naomi and Ruth, continued on their course, rebuilding their lives through courage and fortitude—with God’s help in giving them favor with Boaz, a close relative of Naomi’s husband, Elimelech, who was very wealthy. Boaz allowed Ruth to glean in his fields for barley, redeemed the land of Naomi and also married Ruth. “So Boaz took Ruth and she became his wife; and when he went in to her, the Lord gave her conception, and she bore a son. Then the women said to Naomi, ‘Blessed be the Lord, who has not left you this day without a close relative; and may his name be famous in Israel! And may he be to you a restorer of life and a nourisher of your old age; for your daughter-in-law, who loves you, who is better to you than seven sons, has borne him.’ Then Naomi took the child and laid him on her bosom, and became a nurse to him” (Ruth 4:13–16). What a blessing of joy and comfort this must have been for Naomi!
“Also the neighbor women gave him a name, saying, ‘There is a son born to Naomi.’ And they called his name Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David” (v. 17). And as we know, this birth perpetuated Christ’s ancestral lineage.
Naomi and Ruth must have learned some difficult but valuable lessons during their adversity as they rebuilt their lives, but having the courage and fortitude to see things through, they became stronger women as a result.
Queen Esther found herself in quite a dilemma when Mordecai, the relative who had raised her as his own daughter after her parents died, informed her of a wicked plot to kill the Jews of the land. He admonished her to go before King Ahasuerus and petition him to deliver the Jews from annihilation. There were two major problems that stood in her way, which would make this a very formidable task.
First: the perpetrator of this evil plot was a man named Haman, whom the king had recently appointed to the highest and most honorable position in the palace (Esther 3:1). Haman had a grudge against Mordecai because he would not bow to him nor pay him homage in the king’s gate—thus the plot to kill all the Jews, including Mordecai, in order to take revenge on Mordecai. Haman had even obtained permission from the king to kill the Jews—the king being unaware that Esther was Jewish.
Second: it was against the law to appear before the king without being summoned by him. If one did appear before the king, and was not accepted by the king extending his golden scepter, then the penalty was death. Esther had not been summoned by the king for 30 days. So she informed Mordecai of this (Esther 4:11–12).
In the face of these problems, Mordecai sent word back to Esther: “And Mordecai told them to answer Esther: ‘Do not think in your heart that you will escape in the king’s palace any more than all the other Jews. For if you remain completely silent at this time, relief and deliverance will arise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father’s house will perish. Yet who knows whether you have come to the kingdom for such a time as this?’” (Esther 4:13–14).
Then with courage and fortitude (the strength of mind to face this danger with courage), Esther made a very difficult, gut-wrenching decision. “Then Esther told them to reply to Mordecai: ‘Go, gather all the Jews who are present in Shushan, and fast for me; neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day. My maids and I will fast likewise. And so I will go to the king, which is against the law; and if I perish, I perish!’” (Esther 4:15–16). “So Mordecai went his way and did according to all that Esther commanded him” (v. 17).
“Now it happened on the third day that Esther put on her royal robes and stood in the inner court of the king’s palace, across from the king’s house, while the king sat on his royal throne in the royal house, facing the entrance of the house” (Esther 5:1).
What a beautiful sight she must have been, regally arrayed in her royal robes, having the strength of mind (fortitude with courage) to face this life-or-death situation.
“So it was, when the king saw Queen Esther standing in the court, that she found favor in his sight, and the king held out to Esther the golden scepter that was in his hand. Then Esther went near and touched the top of the scepter” (Esther 5:2). “And the king said to her, ‘What do you wish, Queen Esther? What is your request? It shall be given to you—up to half the kingdom!’” (v. 3).
Then through a series of events, with God’s favor and guidance, this gutsy queen was able to expose Haman and his evil plot to King Ahasuerus at just the right time (Esther 7:1–10). Thus Haman’s evil plot turned around on him. This is a classic example of reaping what one has sown. “Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, and he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him” (Proverbs 26:27). King Ahasuerus was so shocked and enraged that Haman would devise such a plot—to kill all the Jews—including his own queen—that he took drastic action to deal with Haman, having him hanged on the same gallows that Haman had prepared for Mordecai. “So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then the king’s wrath subsided” (Esther 7:10). Then, in order to deliver the Jews from annihilation, Esther implored the king to rescind the order to kill all the Jews, which he had given to Haman and which had gone out into all the lands. The king gave Esther the permission to take the proper steps to neutralize his previous decree, which she did—thus delivering not only Mordecai and the Jews, but herself as well (Esther 8:1–17). God was with Esther in all that she did, from the moment she decided to seek His help through fasting and prayer, and to rely on Him for the courage and fortitude that she would need.
I have known of cases where courage was definitely needed, was prevalent and endured for a time, but eventually failed due to the lack of fortitude. And when courage fails, then hope is lost. Losing hope can result in various negative and destructive emotions and actions such as: depression, drug addiction (to numb the suffering) and even giving up on life. One must hang on to courage and fortitude; it is of the utmost importance!
Fortitude is the key element or component that enables one to see the glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel. It gives the impetus to press on toward the goal—no matter what the circumstances are. The synonyms for fortitude are: grit, backbone, pluck and guts (Merriam-Webster). The aforementioned ladies certainly had all of these qualities in abundance.
So with our goal as God’s Kingdom and His righteousness (Matthew 6:33), let us continue to go forward toward this goal of our high calling of God in Christ Jesus with courage and fortitude.