One of Satan's greatest tools is getting into our heads and creating doubt.  He knows that if he can shake our confidence, then he has a foothold into our life.  Do any of these phrases ever enter your mind?

I don't know if I am good enough.

I am such a looser.

I have nothing to offer.

If I try I will fail.

I worry too much to be effective.

I can't follow God consistently.

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I am sure from time to time we entertain thoughts similar to these.  I hate to break it to you but these statements ARE true.  True because they all focus on self.  Notice the emphasis. I don't. I am. I have. I will. I worry. I can't.  I, I, I.  The scriptures teach that no one is righteous, no one is wise (Apart from God.)

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Now, we all know people who are very capable and seem to have it all together.  There are people with many talents and abilities and it can be very intimidating to be around them.  I know there are people who excel apart from a relationship with Christ, however, my experience has been that to rise up and have confidence in our life as a parent takes relying on God to build us up through His spirit to be the woman God desires.  A confidence in self alone will eventually fail.  Our confidence has to be first in Christ, who is able to do immeasurably more than we can ever think or imagine.

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One man tells a story of a time he and his son were shopping.  The woman helping them was walking with a limp and he asked her if she was alright.  She explained about an injury and that she has hurt her ankle.  The man asked if he could pray for her and reluctantly she agreed.  After the prayer the man and his son left with their purchases. His son said to him as they were leaving, "Dad, we really do believe what we say we believe, don't we?"

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The question for today is, "Do we believe God?"  I didn't say Do we believe in God?  But do we really believe what we read in the Bible? Believing  brings confidence.  As we live like we really believe, we then experience the blessings of God and then our confidence grows and the cycle continues.  Renee Swope in her book, "A Confident Heart" says when we know the power of God's promises and live like they are true, then we become the women we want to be; a woman with a confident heart.

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"LIVE LIKE THE PROMISES OF GOD ARE TRUE"

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I must admit that I say I believe God but often doubt creeps in and then I don't live as if I trust all that God says.  I worry.  I fear. I can even despair.  Especially in the hard moments of life.  I focus on the mountain in front of me instead on the one who can move mountains.  Walking in complete faith is difficult.

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So, what are we to believe?

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We have gone over many times all the scriptures that say exactly who we are in Christ.  Refer to Lesson 1 in the Loving Myself series.  We are chosen, redeemed, loved, remembered, secure, able, called, thought of before we were created, etc.  And we have looked at the promises of God.

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The question we sometimes struggle with is, "Is God enough?"

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Renee Swope offers these questions

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Is God enough?

When a friend betrays me?

When I need to forgive the unforgivable?

When my child is having issues beyond my control?

When my marriage is in trouble?

When someone hates me?

When there is a serious illness in my family?

When others don't recognize my value?

When someone I love uses words that hurt me?

When I am having financial problems?

When my old self rears her ugly head?

When the world seems out of control?

When my health is declining?

When I am let down and disappointed?

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I seem to be very confident in our Savior when everything is going well but I too often question God when circumstances are not going as I would like.  I am realizing that in those difficult moments it is the best time to focus even more on the promises of God and a lifestyle that lives out a confidence in Him.

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When we question, it is time to renew our mind by taking our thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ.  When we wonder, "Where is God?" We can change our thoughts to, "I may not feel it but I know you are here."  And then look and we will see the many ways God is near to the broken hearted.

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After explaining how Christ's sacrifice was made once for all and how God has made a new covenant with His people, Hebrews 10 goes on to promise that He will remember our sins no longer.  Because of this truth we are told starting in verse 19 that we can boldly enter the Most Holy Place because of the blood of Christ.  It continues:

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Hebrews 10:23-25

"Let us hold tightly without wavering to the hope we affirm, for God can be trusted to keep His promise.  Let us think of ways to motivate one another to acts of love and good works.  And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage one another especially now that the day of His return is drawing near."

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Hebrews 10: 32-39

"Think back on those early days when you first learned about Christ.  Remember how you remained faithful even though it meant terrible suffering.  Sometimes you were exposed to public ridicule and were beaten, and sometimes you helped others who were suffering the same things.  You suffered along with those who were thrown into jail, and when all you owned was taken from you, you accepted it with joy.  You knew there were better things waiting for you that will last forever.  So don't throw away this confident trust in the Lord.  Remember the great reward it brings you!  Patient endurance is what you need now, so that you will continue to do God's will.  Then you will receive all that He has promised."

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In our last lesson we talked about living counter culturally and living out our faith in front of our children.  That is the best way to teach a biblical world view.  And it is a major factor in why youth grow up to have their own strong Christian faith.

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The more we shackle our negative thoughts and do the mental work to replace them with god's promises, the more our confidence will grow.  The more God will show Himself strong in our life, and the more we will trust Him and the more we will live out that confidence.  The more we will believe.  The more we will trust.  Slowly, doubts and fears will be quelled.  But we need to be in HIs word constantly.

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​I used an object lesson with my Girls of Grace group to illustrate the concept of trusting in the Lord.  Even when it does not seem natural of even sensible.  I filled a gallon zip lock bag with water.  I held it up and asked the girls if they trusted me to pierce the bag with a sharp pencil through both sides of the bag without any of the water spilling out.  They were skeptical and as I held the bag over their heads and plunged the pencil into the bag they covered their heads fearing they would get wet.  After they saw that it worked and that they could trust me, I asked if they thought I could do it again.  More believed and wanted to see me do it a second time.  After that every girl wanted to do it for themself.  The bag was pierced many times and still no water spilled out.  Well, we know that science can explain why it was possible but I explained this is how it works with trusting God.  When you see that you can trust Him once, it is easy to trust Him a second time.  And as your life becomes a testament to the power of God and His kept promises, you inspire others to trust Him also.

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​So, as moms we can trust what God says as we parent.  We can be confident that making decisions based on God's word will yield a harvest in the lives of our children.  We can rely on scriptures like the following:

Proverbs 22:6,  Psalm 127: 3-5,  Ephesians 6: 1-4,  Deuteronomy 6: 5-9,  Hebrews 12: 7-11,  Colossians 3: 20-21, 

Isaiah 54:13,  Proverbs 1: 8-9.    And many more.

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Study Questions

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What disciplines do you have to help you live a life of confidence in the Lord?

When you doubt, what so you do to renew your mind?