Michael walked out of the burrito shop with more energy than when he walked in. He had agreed to meet the carpenter again in a week to update him on his progress. As he drove home, all he could think about was the word courage. His friend Erwin McManus had once told him that courage is the difference between dreaming of the life you want and living the life of your dreams, but as Michael searched his heart, he didn’t feel very courageous. He knew many stories of courageous people who had changed the world because of their courage. Yet knowing he needed courage to conquer his fears and having the courage to do so were entirely different matters.

He remembered a quote from Nelson Mandela that he had once heard and memorized: “Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.” Michael realized he had been listening to himself, thinking all that mattered was a successful outcome, but now he realized that what mattered most was that he bounced back from each failure and setback. The future wasn’t certain. His plan may not work. He might fail. But he didn’t have to focus on any of that. All he had to focus on was having the courage to get up and keep moving forward.

“Be courageous,” he told himself as he clenched his fists. Fear had caused him to collapse once but would not again. Life’s too short not to go after your dreams. “Life’s too short to live in fear,” he shouted as he looked in the rearview mirror. He didn’t want to just be courageous for himself, but also for his family and everyone who believed in him. He knew that years from now his kids would be telling stories about him, and he wanted them to say that he was courageous, loving, and caring. He wanted them to know that he was willing to fail in order to succeed. He knew his life and the lessons his kids learned from him would be the greatest legacy he could leave them, and there was no way he was going to leave a legacy of fear and cowardice. Besides, he and Sarah didn’t have a plan B. They had decided when they stepped out in faith to pursue their dream, they couldn’t have a plan B, or it would be too easy to quit. There was no other option. Sure, their families criticized them, but they liked to say that everyone can be a critic but only the courageous create. Now he was at a crossroads. Let failure define him and let the critics have their day, or let his courage define him. There was no other way. He would be courageous and create the life of his dreams or fail trying.

He walked into the house and straight to his kids’ bedrooms to write a message on their whiteboards. They might not fully understand what he was writing now, but over time he believed the message would serve them well.

No challenge can stop you if you have the courage to keep moving forward in the face of your greatest fears and biggest challenges. Be courageous.

Michael then walked to his office and with all the courage he could muster, he looked at the sales and customer service reports and began to devise a plan to succeed.