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by Jon Walker

“I can do all things through Him who strengthens me.” Philippians 4:13 (NASB)

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The secret to living with confidence is to be confident in God’s compassion and power. He is the Almighty and everlasting God, and his power and compassion are unlimited. We gain confidence by developing confidence in God and letting go of confidence in ourselves.

When we think we have to do it on our own, or when we think we are doing it on our own, we stand on an uncertain foundation, like the man who built his house upon the sand. No matter how confident we are in ourselves, eventually the rains will come, washing away our self-confidence.

But when we have God-confidence, we know – deep down – that we will always be able to approach God’s throne of grace boldly with confidence – knowing “we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.” (Hebrews 4:16, NLT)

With God-confidence, we know we are loved and accepted by God; we know we are created and shaped by God; we know we have talents and skills given to us by God, and by understanding our true position in Christ, we can be confident that God is with us always, even unto the ends of the earth, even when we open our mouths to speak.

In faith, we can be confident, knowing God’s power is there, trusting God makes it possible for us to do “all things through Him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13, NASB)

What does this mean?

· Transfer your confidence to God – Believe he is “working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him.” (Philippians 2:13, NLT) Compare your track record to God’s and see which of you has proved to be more trustworthy. If you believe your confidence should still remain with you, ask God to help you dig deep to uncover why you believe that way. He is never upset or surprised by such honesty.

· Trust God’s Spirit is working within you – Ask God to develop within you a confidence that his Spirit will give you a supernatural power to preach good news to the poor, to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives, and to release prisoners from the darkness. (Adapted from Isaiah 61:1-3)

· Why God-confidence is important to you – You may be thinking, “There’s something I’d really like to do, but I don’t think that I can do it.” This kind of thinking may keep you from even trying, but if you’re confident in God – and what he can do through your life – then there’s every reason to move forward, and no good reason to stand still.

· If you had God-confidence, how would the next few days of your life be different?

The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it.
The world and all its people belong to him.

Psalm 24:1 (New Living Translation)

The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it.

Psalm 24:1 (New International Version)

God claims Earth and everything in it, God claims World and all who live on it.

Psalm 24:1 (The Message)

The Psalmist declares the Lord’s authority in this verse as well as ownership of this world and everything in it and that includes us!

Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!

Matthew 26:41 (New Living Translation)

Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Matthew 26:41 (New King James Version)

Stay alert; be in prayer so you don’t wander into temptation without even knowing you’re in danger. There is a part of you that is eager, ready for anything in God. But there’s another part that’s as lazy as an old dog sleeping by the fire.

Matthew 26:41 (The Message)

I want you woven into a tapestry of love, in touch with everything there is to know of God. Then you will have minds confident and at rest, focused on Christ, God’s great mystery.

Colossians 2:2 (The Message)

My purpose is that they may be encouraged in heart and united in love, so that they may have the full riches of complete understanding, in order that they may know the mystery of God, namely, Christ.

Colossians 2:2 (New International Version)

I want them to be encouraged and knit together by strong ties of love. I want them to have complete confidence that they understand God’s mysterious plan, which is Christ himself.

Colossians 2:2 (New Living Translation)

Seek his will in all you do,
and he will show you which path to take.

Proverbs 3:6 (New Living Translation)

In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He shall direct your paths.

Proverbs 3:6 (New King James Version)

Listen for God’s voice in everything you do, everywhere you go;
he’s the one who will keep you on track.

Proverbs 3:6 (The Message)

Remember this—a farmer who plants only a few seeds will get a small crop. But the one who plants generously will get a generous crop.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (New Living Translation)

Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (New International Version)

Remember: A stingy planter gets a stingy crop; a lavish planter gets a lavish crop.

2 Corinthians 9:6 (The Message)

This piece of agricultural wisdom contains a profound truth about Christian giving. Like the foolish farmer, he who plants only a few seeds—who refuses to trust God with their future financial security—will inevitably lose out on God’s rich blessings.

by Max Lucado

In the shop of a blacksmith, there are three types of tools. There are tools on the junk pile:
outdated, broken, dull, rusty.

They sit in the cobwebbed corner, useless to their master, oblivious to their calling.

There are tools on the anvil:
melted down, molten hot, moldable, changeable.

They lie on the anvil, being shaped by their master, accepting their calling.

There are tools of usefulness:
sharpened, primed, defined, mobile.

They lie ready in the blacksmith’s tool chest, available to their master, fulfilling their calling.

Some people lie useless:
lives broken, talents wasting, fires quenched, dreams dashed.

They are tossed in with the scrap iron, in desperate need of repair, with no notion of purpose.

Others lie on the anvil:
hearts open, hungry to change, wounds healing, visions clearing.

They welcome the painful pounding of the blacksmith’s hammer, longing to be rebuilt, begging to be called.

Others lie in their Master’s hands:
well tuned, uncompromising, polished, productive.

They respond to their Master’s forearm, demanding nothing, surrendering all.

We are all somewhere in the blacksmith’s shop. We are either on the scrap pile, in the Master’s hands on the anvil, or in the tool chest. (Some of us have been in all three.)

From the shelves to the workbench, from the water to the fire…I’m sure that somewhere you will see yourself.

Paul spoke of becoming “an instrument for noble purposes.” And what a becoming it is! The rubbish pile of broken tools, the anvil of recasting, the hands of the Master- it’s a simultaneously joyful and painful voyage.

And for you who make the journey—who leave the heap and enter the fire, dare to be pounded on God’s anvil, and doggedly seek to discover your own purpose—take courage, for you await the privilege of being called “God’s chosen instruments.”