Joshua 1:9 – I command you – be strong and courageous!  Do not be afraid or discouraged.  For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (NLT)
Not many soldiers in the military could survive if they embraced cowardice instead of courage.  If our whole military is not courageous, they would not last very long in the battlefield.  That is why one of the character traits in the Army values is Courage.  Courage is the characteristic that gets soldiers through any battle no matter how bleak the circumstances.  With this command for strength and courage, they are not afraid to stare in the face of their enemy.
Joshua is called to pick up the mantle after Moses passes away, and what Joshua has to work with looks very difficult, if not impossible.  He is called to lead a large group of ungrateful Israelites to their promised land filled with a large resistance.  Everything looks very impossible to accomplish.  However, God commands Joshua to lead them into their promised land anyway.  God reminds Joshua He would be there with him every step of the way as well.  At the end of it all, mission accomplished.
Our lives should demonstrate this kind of strength and courage.  Our lives may not be as difficult as what Joshua has to face, but to us, our life circumstances seem impossible to cope.  But God is calling us to be strong, to have courage, no matter how tough our circumstances.  God is much more powerful and much more capable than we give Him credit for.  God is commanding us to be strong and courageous, especially in the sight of our problems, and He will see us through our mission.  After all, He is with us everywhere we go.