Taking the Bull by Its Horns

Lands of certainty come scantly as we hopscotch from island to island interspersed between tremulous seas, and we do so in the faint hope of safe shores.

When we’re outbound of our safety and the fear piles up, the last thing we think of is taking the bull by its horns.

But the worst of times can appear as a trick. We can be corralled into feelings of terror when we ‘faithfully’ submit to the horrible voices of degradation. But if we were to apply the reverse action, taking our courage, we might take the bull by its horns.

Deliberately, we might challenge our fear by deciding to throw ourselves into it.

No Fear In The Presence Of Fear

This may, for many people, be an uncertain business. There is possibly a cogent reticence to giving ourselves away. But to deny our fear long enough to challenge our fear means we might achieve something.

The least we might achieve is the feeling of courage; to have the tenacious audacity to go against the flow of our emotions and act by faith.

By faith, we take our fear, that which we deny for a moment, and by our actions, we ask God to transform it.

And by a moment’s denial, we don’t talk of an unhealthy denial, for, as it is, this denial is every bit a conscious decision. Usually denial comes in a fearful form—when we can’t bear the truth. This denial tips fear on its head. This denial honours hope and doesn’t defeat it.

One Step On The Long Haul

One of the greatest things about taking the bull by its horns is we express an intention, that, once expressed, is easier to maintain as we continue.

The first step is the hardest one. Sometimes the hardest person to convince is us. Much of the time we don’t believe until we see, especially when it comes to the person we see, when alone, in the mirror.

Once we see the product of our courage we see more easily the faithfulness of God in sticking by us as we presented ourselves in faithfulness by our courage.

When we’ve taken the bull by its horns, which is any challenge we’ve previously balked at, we stand at the crossroad of a breakthrough.

***

Life pays handsome dividends, the reward for courage to act decisively, when to run in fear is our usual choice. When we choose no fear in the presence of fear, and we take that first step, we stand to win a vital self-respect.

© 2012 S. J. Wickham.