Real Confidence: Discover the Source and How You Can Have It Every Day
Do you need more confidence in your life? In the world, we often get the message that we need more self-confidence, but God tells us in His Word that being confident in ourselves is actually a dangerous way to live. Instead, we need to be confident in Him. And as born-again Christians, we have everything in us – through Christ – that we need so we can do everything we need to do.
Philippians 3:3 (AMP) says, "For we [Christians] are the true circumcision, who worship God in spirit and by the Spirit of God and exult and glory and pride ourselves in Jesus Christ, and put no confidence or dependence [on what we are] in the flesh and on outward privileges and physical advantages and external appearances."
This means our confidence shouldn't come from what we can do in our own effort, who we know, a professional title or what we look like. This is how the world operates, but God doesn't see us that way. God sees our heart!
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First Samuel 16:7 (AMP) says, "…For the Lord sees not as man sees; for man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart." God is not impressed with our good works, nice clothes, the kind of car we drive, or anything else that has to do with our outward appearance. The only thing that impresses God is a good heart—a heart that sincerely loves Him, that desires to be obedient to Him and that loves people. When our heart is right with God, we have all the confidence we need to be and do everything He has created us to be and do.
Confidence is a belief that you can do a thing; it's faith in God that He has equipped you to do it. When you're confident in who you are in Christ, you can relax and you won't be caught up or controlled by fear, worry or anxiety. The key to living with this kind of confidence is understanding that apart from Jesus, you can do nothing of eternal value, but you can do all things through Christ who gives you strength! (See John 15:5; Philippians 4:13.)
I heard someone say once that a Christian with no confidence is like a jumbo jet sitting on the runway with no fuel. In other words, you have all the equipment but no fuel to go anywhere. That's a frustrating way to live!
We desperately need the wisdom of God if we're going to accomplish the things He's planned for us to do. The best thing we can do is be constantly dependent on Jesus. John 15:5 (AMP) says, "I am the Vine; you are the branches. Whoever lives in Me and I in him bears much (abundant) fruit. However, apart from Me [cut off from vital union with Me] you can do nothing."
Here's a good illustration to demonstrate what this verse is talking about: A flower is attached to a vine that gives it life. As long as that flower stays connected to the vine, it is connected to its life source. But once it's detached, it can't continue to thrive.
In the same way, we are dependent on Christ to be our source of life. When we accept Him as our Savior and we're born again, He comes to live in us and He gives us life deep within our spirit. We need to really get this because as long as we're "hanging on the Vine," looking to God as our vital necessity, then we will be confident we can do whatever we need to do in life.
Jeremiah 29:13 (AMP) says, "Then you will seek Me, inquire for, and require Me [as a vital necessity] and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart." I love that! And I often pray, "God, I'm nothing without You. I need You. You have to help me or things just won't work right."
God must be our top priority – our vital necessity – every day of our life! There's nothing more important than having a personal relationship with Him, spending time with Him in prayer and studying His Word. If you will keep Him first, then everything else in your life will fall into place and you'll have the wisdom, grace and strength to face every challenging situation that comes against you.
I want to encourage you to remember that being self-confident is foolish. It's rooted in pride and only leads to frustration and dissatisfaction. When you get up each day, before you get busy with your daily responsibilities, take a few minutes to pray. Tell God, "I need You, Lord. I'm nothing without You, and I know that whatever I do today, it won't work out right if You don't help me. Forgive me of my sins and cleanse me of everything that's not right in me – every thought, word and deed. Help me to treat people right today and to be a blessing everywhere that I go. And help me to never forget that I'm blessed because YOU are good, not because I'm good. Help me to keep you first in my life, Lord. Thank You for helping me. Amen!"
