It is my hope and prayer, and my challenge to all of us, that as we transition to more things being open, and being around more people, that we work diligently to treat one another with respect and understanding. Whether it is when we are shopping, eating out, waiting to get our dogs groomed, or returning here for worship, I hope we will extend an extra measure of grace to those around us. When we have to follow guidelines that might not always make sense to us, or make us comfortable, I hope we will do it with confidence that it will not be forever, but for now, so we can keep people safe, and get people back to work. Please, as God’s people, let us set the example of love and bear with one another through this time of transition, and let us extend to one another grace and peace.
Being confident helps us stay positive because when we are confident we are comfortable, we feel like we know what we are doing, and let’s be honest, confidence helps us feel like we have things under control. But please hear this, there are times when all of us feel like we don’t know what we are doing and most of the time we never have things under control. Even the people who appear most confident struggle with insecurity. Even the people who appear most competent wonder if they are doing things the right way. We all have that inner voice that says, “you’re not good enough, you don’t have what it takes, and you can’t do it. Give up.” We all have those areas where we feel insecure and like we don’t measure up. All of us.
When we allow that voice to lead us and shape our lives, we usually do give up. In fact, many times we don’t even show up. When I was asked to take part in just about any outside game as a kid, I would usually say no because I wasn’t very athletic. From Frisbee to football, I just wouldn’t show up because I was insecure. When I thought about auditioning for parts in the school musical or plays, there was a voice that said, you're not good enough, you're not talented enough, you're not liked enough to get the part, so I didn’t bother showing up to audition. When we allow insecurity to guide our lives, we end up not living the lives God wants for us. We miss out on so much, which leads us to feeling negative, hopeless, and defeated. So you might be thinking right now that the answer is to be more self-confident. Wrong. It’s not self-confidence we need but God-confidence.
If we are only going to trust in our own strength and ability, we will fail, but if we will trust in God, we will thrive. The Apostle Paul said, don’t be so naive and self-confident... You could fall flat on your face as easily as anyone else. Forget about self-confidence; it’s useless. Cultivate God-confidence. 1 Cor. 10:12 (Message)
Self-confidence is useless because our heart is deceitful. Jeremiah 17:9 the heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. It’s the heart that tells us we are better than we are. It pumps us full of pride and tells us that we don’t need anyone or anything to make it big. The heart is deceitful, it puffs us up and the Bible says, pride comes before a fall.
Self-confidence is useless because our flesh is weak. The disciples walked with Jesus for 3 years and they told Jesus they would be with him no matter what, and yet the night before his crucifixion, Jesus asked them to stay awake and pray with him. When Jesus found them all sleeping, he said, your spirit is willing but your flesh is weak. I can’t tell you how many times I have said that myself. My spirit is willing, I want to be faithful, but my flesh is weak. I give into temptation. I give in to my will and my way. I abandon the things of God.
Self-confidence is useless because our behavior is inconsistent. Today we might feel strong and capable so we step out in faith to do what we know we need to do and can do, but then tomorrow comes and we aren’t feeling it so we aren’t doing it. We struggle to overcome sin. We walk into temptation more times than we want to admit. We can’t maintain the strength and life we want.
If we only focus on self-confidence and building up our heart, our flesh, and our actions - we will fail. Self-confidence will only go so far, but God-confidence will see us through all things because it is not based on how I see myself but how I see God and how God sees me. So let’s talk about how to cultivate God-confidence by focusing on three truths of God.
#1 God is always FOR me. Romans 8:31. If God is for us, who can be against us? No matter what we have going on in our lives, God is for us. When we succeed, God is for us. When we fail, God is for us. When we are faithful, God is for us. When we are faithless, God is faithful and is still for us. God’s love and faithfulness does not depend on our wavering heart, weak flesh, or inconsistent behavior - God is always for us.
Maybe you heard this past week about Jon Steingard. He is the lead singer of a Christian band who said that he no longer believes in God. I love what one of his band members said, “God is still for Jon and Jon still matters… that truth doesn’t change because we question it.” No matter what we believe, God is for us. Even when we have doubts about God, God is still for us. It is ok to question God’s existence and wrestle with our faith, God is still for us. For too long people stayed away from church because they had doubts, we all have doubts and this is the place to come to wrestle with them because God is for us.
Jesus told us this was the way God’s love works in our lives when he told the story about a father who had two sons. When one of them demanded his share of the inheritance, and then went and spent it all on wild living, the father was still for him. The father didn’t disown his son. He didn’t forget about him or desert him, he actually searched for his son’s return every day, and when that day came, he ran out to greet him, threw his arms around him and kissed him. (Obviously pre COVID-19 days) The father threw a party for his son because he was for his son - even though his son had failed him.
The other son had always been faithful. He was always there for his father and always worked hard for him. You can imagine how slighted he must have felt when his father threw a part of his prodigal brother. He stayed away from the party and his home, but then his father went to find him and when he did he told him, my son, you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. Son, I’m for you. Always have been and always will be.
This is the picture of God we need to make the center of our hearts and lives. God is always for us. It doesn’t matter if no one else is on our side, God is there. When we feel alone, forgotten, and passed over by others, God chooses us. We are on his side and he is on our side. When we know this, it gives us a confidence that doesn’t come from our strength or ability but God’s acceptance and love. If God is for me, who can be against me. I can do all things.
God-confidence also comes from knowing that God always HELPS me. Hebrews 13:5-6. Because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” so we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.” Our confidence doesn’t come from our own strength and ability but from the knowledge that God is with me - to help me.
Psalm 46:1. God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. God helps us in times of trouble. If we find ourselves in over our heads, we can try swimming harder or we can trust God. No matter what problem we may be facing, God is there to help us. If we need help in our relationships, patience with our families, grace in dealing with difficult people at work - God can help us. When we need help to step out to try something new, God can help us. Where do you need God’s help today? He is here to help you.
God helped Moses when he didn’t think he could lead the people. God helped Gideon when he didn’t think he could defeat the enemy. Jesus helped Peter get out of a boat and walk on water, and God can help us do more than we ever thought possible because God always helps us. God looks at us and says, you got this. Go.
And the last way we can stay positive and cultivate God-confidence is to remember that God is still working IN me. I am not a finished product either in life or faith. I am still learning, and growing, and when I fail, I need to remind myself that God is still working IN me.
The Apostle Paul was a man who knew all about the power of God working in people over a lifetime. Early in his life, God transformed Paul from an enemy of Christ to a follower of Christ, but God wasn’t done. Years later God moved Paul from the sidelines of the mission of Jesus to the center of it by making him a leader in the church at Antioch, but God still was done. Paul then set out to take the gospel of Jesus to the ends of the earth.
Paul never stopped believing that God had something more for him, which is why Paul could say, I am confident of this, that He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6
Notice that Paul’s confidence is NOT in himself, his ability, or the ability of anyone around him. Paul’s not self-confident; he is God-confident. Paul knows that God is still working in all of God’s people. By no means have any of us arrived in faith - we are all on the journey. Our relationship with God can get stronger, our relationship with one another in the church can get healthier, and our relationship and care for the world can reach farther. We are not done yet - not by a long shot - which is why God continues to be there for us and to help us - day after day.
Being confident is important to being positive, but don’t fool yourself into thinking that self-confidence is what you need, it’s not. God-confidence is what will see us through. Knowing that God is for us, knowing that God will help us, knowing that no matter how much we might fail, get caught up in sinful thoughts, words, and deeds, again and again and again, God is still working in us, that is what will help us stay positive.
Next Steps
Stay Positive - Confidence
What events or activities have you missed out on because you lacked confidence?
How do insecurities continue to be the voices that lead you in life and faith?
What would you say is the difference between self-confidence and God-confidence?
God Is Always FOR Me Read Luke 15:11-32 (prodigal son)
● How is the father “for” both of his children?
● Which son do you more often feel like?
● Can you name a time when you ran back to God and God was there for you?
● Where do you need to know that God is still there for you?
God Always HELPS Me Read Hebrews 13:5-6, Psalm 46:1
● When has God helped you in the past?
● When have you seen God help others in specific ways?
● Where do you need God’s help today?
○ Ask him for help.
God Is Still Working IN Me Read Philippians 1:6
● This was written by the Apostle Paul. How did God work in Paul throughout his life?
● Name another person in the Bible where you see God’s power and love at work?
● How has God worked in people you have known or read about?
● How has God worked in your life?
● Where do you still need God to be at work in your life?
