Confidence Is…

…these things are NOT confidence

Maybe for a day, but not in the long run. If you read my previous blog “What is Confidence” you’d know that I tried these things, and it left me feeling exhausted, empty and confused. Yes, I did temporarily feel good but I could only fake it for so long. I prayed (and still pray) for God to teach me and change me into His kind of real confidence – the only kind that can be sustainable. Even though I fail and fall into those old patterns, slowly over time a new way of looking at confidence is being introduced to me.

Real confidence IS…

• Knowing God is your strength, and giving Him the credit
• Forgiving, even when they don’t deserve it
• Praying blessings for your enemy or the woman you compare yourself to 
• Listening and following God’s voice guide you during trigger trauma responses
• Laying down pride and defensiveness – to give up fighting and instead love them
• Lifting someone up, at their level, rather than correcting or intimidating
• Not needing to know everything, admitting you don’t know
• Not needing to be liked temporarily by others
• Sitting in tension with peace
• Willing to be misunderstood or judged by others in order to do what’s right
• Being able to hold your tongue
• Choosing to not wear makeup or cute clothes when you know another girl is struggling
• Bringing your thoughts and feelings to God, telling God how you really feel

I pray that we continue to lean into Jesus’s example of leadership, to see what He did. We have to lay down our own agenda and image everyday in order to allow our lives to be a living sacrifice to God. People may or may not be impressed with us, but that’s not the point anymore. We now live to please God! Our confidence is in Him.