The Courage to Proceed - Encouragement for Today - February 24, 2020

Peace and perspective from God's timeless truths. [View this email in your browser]( Encouragement for Today --------------------------------------------------------------- [Tracie Braylock]February 24, 2020 The Courage to Proceed [TRACIE BRAYLOCK]( [Listen to this devotion]( {Editor’s Note to our audio devotions listeners … although we highly value the audio translations of our devotions, we wanted you to know we will be pressing pause on them for an indeterminate amount of time, effective March 2. Please know this is not a permanent decision. It is our intent to revise this service as soon as possible. We will let our devotions audience know when audio will be available again.} “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” [Joshua 1:9]( (ESV) The traffic patterns were changing daily as construction continued on our local expressway. Traffic was moving freely on both sides, so it was odd to see a long line of vehicles on the on-ramp waiting to enter the traffic flow. From my passenger seat, I searched for a reason for the backup. A woman was slowly driving her car down the ramp. She then got to the end of the ramp where her lane opened onto the expressway, and she came to a complete stop. There didn’t appear to be anything wrong with her car. And it seemed as though she didn’t notice the blaring horns from the vehicles behind her. She was paralyzed, unable to proceed with this new traffic pattern in front of her. As we continued on our journey, I wondered how many people were impacted by her fear and hesitation and who would miss important moments because she refused to move forward. I also wondered how long it took her to gather the courage to move into the flow of traffic. Seeing her unwillingness to proceed because of the confusing construction illustrated an important point: Second-guessing your decisions because of how a situation appears not only halts your progress, but causes a ripple effect on the community around you. The path she was on was surrounded by construction trucks, barrels and repositioned lines so she decided to stop, delaying everyone from reaching their destinations. As God says in [Joshua 1:9]( “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” [Continue reading...]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( [Read about Salem Web Network]( | [Subscription Preferences]( | [Unsubscribe]( --------------------------------------------------------------- © 2020 Salem Web Network. All rights reserved. 111 Virginia Street, Suite 500, Richmond, VA 23219. This email is never sent unsolicited. You are receiving this email because your email address, {EMAIL}, is signed up to receive newsletters, updates, and special offers from Encouragement for Today. [Link](