Where Does Your Confidence Lay?

But blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence is in him. – Jeremiah 17:7

Dale stood staring in the bathroom mirror. He bent his head from side to side, swallowed hard, and straightened his silk tie. You look nice. Good shirt and tie choice – practice the smile. You can do this. His attempts to raise a sudden brow of confidence were futile. This would be the biggest job interview of his career and he had to make the perfect impression.

His stomach twisted and he could feel the rise of burning acid in his throat. “I can do this,” he said out loud as he smiled at the figure in the mirror. He gave himself a hardy high-five and headed toward his car. Dale stepped onto the porch, his shoulders pulled back, his chest out, he walked with confidence that he would be the next vice-president of sales. He began the long walk to his car at the foot of the driveway. With each step he took his posture slipped slightly. Doubt entered his mind and self-sabotage tricked through his thoughts. Maybe he wasn’t right for this job. Perhaps he didn’t have enough education, enough experience –enough wisdom to handle the issues that would cross his desk. Maybe this was a bad idea. By the time he reached his car fear had taken hold and his legs felt weak. His thoughts were muddled and he couldn’t recall his practiced responses. Dale had lost his confidence.

Satan rejoices in opportunities to ruin us. He takes great pride, not in the speed of his of work, but rather the effectiveness. He stands to our side and whispers quietly into our ear, slipping tidbits of uncertainty into our thoughts, force-feeding us bites of fear until he manages to swipe our feet from beneath us. Once his task is complete, he chalks up another slash to success–content that he has accomplished what he set out to do.

Self-confidence is an issue that many struggle to master. For the few who capitalize on overthrowing the throngs of self-doubt, there is great success. Often times, we fail to realize our lack of self-confidence is a deeply-seeded lack of trust. It’s easy for us to say, “Pray for me as I make this endeavor,” yet we never seriously trust that God is in control. We never really believe that He will help us. It may be that God doesn’t actually provide us the ideal job, but what He does provide is the self-confidence we need to land the position. When we fail to trust, then we fail to succeed and Satan wins again.

God provides for His children in many unique ways – it is not always in the methods we anticipate, rather it’s in building our skills to make decisions or chose wisely. Regardless, His hope is that we place our confidence in Him, and when we do – He blesses us abundantly. Trust in the Lord with all your heart. He will bless you. Where does your confidence lay?

Prayer: Lord, forgive us when we falter in our trust. Give us confidence in You.