Student Compilations

Bombs exploded right and left. Machine guns shot all around. Screams filled the air. Odette Sansom, an allied heroine of World War II, was in France, which was overrun with Nazis at the time. She worked in the underground. As courier to Peter Churchill, she was ordered, if arrested, to faithfully tell the inquisitors that she was married to Peter, who was pretending to be the nephew of the prime minister. Betrayed by a traitorous agent, Odette and Peter were both arrested and imprisoned. Harshly questioned and beaten by the Gestapo, Odette did not give in. The Gestapo gained no other information except from her decoy story. She was condemned to a death camp. After surviving the war, she testified against the prison guards in the concentration camp that she had been placed in.

What is courage? Courage is not letting my fear control me. In a battle, soldiers are not fearless. Wisely, some choose to keep control of their fear. When others allow their fear to control them, they make a huge mistake. Ambrose Redmon stated, “Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the knowledge that something else is more important than fear.” Allowing my fear to take over my life instead of humbly letting God help me control my fear will only lead to disaster. I should control fear. It should not run my life.

In Narnia, Peter not only realized, but admitted that it was partially his fault that Edmund had joined the White Witch and betrayed them. This showed courage. He could admit that he had been wrong. Bravely, when a wolf attacked Susan and Lucy, he went to their rescue. Showing courage, he battled with and killed the wolf. Peter wasn’t the only one who was courageous. When the White Witch was threatening to turn some innocent animals into stone, Edmund, who was her prisoner at the time, defied her the best he could and tried to prevent the horrible threat from actually happening. Before, he had been going along with the White Witch, but he realized that she was evil and acted against her. This was courage.

When one shows courage, it also reveals something about their character. They have the character to take their responsibility and control fear. This is how I want to be. Courage is not only in battle. It takes courage to handle day-to-day problems. For some, it takes courage not to deny Christ. Will I be courageous when I need to, or will I give into fear and let it rule my life? My goal is to rule my fear and not let it rule me. God is Lord of my life, and His presence not only overcomes my fear, but gives me courage.