Confidence...do you have it?

The world teaches a person to be confident in one's own ability and strength. Books and magazines want you to know how to be confident. Here are some titles: '10 Ways to Instantly Build Self Confidence', 'Prepare Yourself for Success-You Can Become Self Confident', 'Self Confidence that will Really Last'.  We're guaranteed confidence, but not as the world teaches...our confidence comes from Christ-His very own. Our Father offers each one of us His confidence that He will flow through us. That's right, Lord God Almighty, Creator of the Universe will flow His power through us to accomplish great and mighty things just like He did with Abraham, Deborah, David, Rahab and many others who gave themselves to Him. Their part in the confidence equation...being available-He's got the able part. God won't  compete with egos and pride but He can use surrender and willingness. We complicate and delay being used by God because we want to debate whether we trust Him with our situation, if our past is too much for Him to handle, and if we are qualified for what He's called us to do. Read scripture and look at the people God used...Moses killed a guy, had to overcome major self esteem issues, and had no specific training to teach people how to cross the Red Sea; David did not go to giant killing school and had major sin, but God called him a man after His own heart; Peter's fishing trade did not qualify him to preach...but his love for Jesus did, even though he denied Jesus three times. The common denominator, they loved Jesus Christ and had a willingness to be used by Him...allowing His confidence to be manifested through them. The amplified version of Philippians 4:13 is my favorite, "I have strength for all things in Christ Who empowers me [I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him Who infuses inner strength into me; I am self-sufficient in Christ's sufficiency]." I seek Him, desire Him, His ability through me. I draw close to Him, He draws close to me, He never leaves me, He will never let loose of my hand, He goes before me making a way when I can't see a way, He loves me and delights in me, He is my strong tower and fortress, I hide under His wing, I run to Him to tell Him my deepest hurts and deepest desires, He loves me when I mess up as much as He loves me when I obey, He is my Father who made me with His very own hands, He has good plans for me, His love overflows in me, He has every step of mine ordered and He holds together everything in His hands, I am His child and He is my Father and He delights in me. He is my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ-Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty I will seek my confidence from the One Who made me and loved me first! My confidence is from Him-it's unshakeable. If God's for me who can be against me? I don't have to feel this...I know this. I can be confident because Genesis 18:14 says, "Is there anything too hard for the Lord?" Well, of course not, so how can anything I encounter be too hard? Will you accept God's unshakeable confidence; will you allow Him to manifest through you to accomplish great things for the Kingdom? I pray you do friend.  Blessings friend!                 6/12/12CIFL-LMM