I was talking with The Carpenter of Creation this morning and as I began to Pray and Ponder, He revealed to me how we really build confidence and self-esteem. He spoke to me on how I can have the heart of a lion, the confidence of David (David vs goliath), and the Courage of Christ!
The answer does not come from self-help, but rather God-Help. If you ever needed confidence or courage, focus on the following points and let them sink in and penetrate your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body to give you the boldness to face every day and every challenge with the same tenacity that Jesus went to The Cross with!
Our Life, Gods Prayer
Our life is The Prayer of God, or as the NLT puts it, we Pray to God who gives us life!
Then God promises to love me all day,
sing songs all through the night!
My life is God's prayer.
Psalm 42.8 (MSG)
But each day the Lord pours his unfailing love upon me,
and through each night I sing his songs,
praying to God who gives me life.
Psalm 42.8 (NLT)
Jesus Intercedes for us
Jesus speaks to The Carpenter of Creation for you! He embraces you!
Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
Romans 8.34 (NIV)
I like how The Message paraphrase puts it...
Jesus our Master has embraced us.
Romans 8.34 (MSG)
We are in the constant presence of God and He even lives with in us through The Holy Spirit!
And I will ask the Father,
Then I will ask the Father to send you the Holy Spirit
who will help [a] you and always be with you.
John 14.16 (CEV)
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another
Counselor to be with you forever
John 14.16 (NIV)
who will help [a] you and always be with you.
John 14.16 (CEV)
And I will ask the Father,
and he will give you another
Counselor to be with you forever
John 14.16 (NIV)
God always Hears Jesus
The Scriptures tell us that when Jesus does Pray on our behalf, God always hears Him!
So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, "Father, I thank you that you have heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me."
John 11:41-42 (NIV)
John 11:41-42 (NIV)
What Is Your Center?
So take inventory. What are you centering your life on? Philippians 4.6-7 (MSG) tells us.....
There are 2 things you can center your self on and around. It's wonderful what happens when Christ
displaces worry at the center of your life
displaces worry at the center of your life
1. Self centered. Being self-centered makes you believe you can get self-help. Being self-centered make you self-conscious and by being self-conscious you are always worried about what everyone else thinks and you will not have the confidence to live the live God created you to live.
2. God Centered. Being God-Centered allows you to seek God-Help. Being God-Centered makes you God-Conscious and you focus only on what God thinks and you could care less what the world thinks.
Allow me to illustrate. God has just blessed our family with a new sweet pea of a girl. My niece rocks my world and inspires my soul. Her initials are KG and when I play with KG I am totally KG-Centered which makes me KG-Conscious. I probably look like the biggest fool with some of the faces I make and some of the sounds I create, but I don't care because my focus is not on myself, it is on my niece. She is my world when I am with her. I have no worries because she, just as Christ does, displaces worry at the center of my life. You know you are no longer self-conscious when you can make a fool of yourself and live without worry.
Fools For Christ
Mark Batterson has written an amazing book called "In A Pit With A Lion On A Snowy Day." In this book he talks about how we must be willing to look foolish if we are to unleash our God-Given Potential. The Scriptures confirm this....
We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! = 1 Cor 4.10 (NIV)
Now I want you to notice that there is a difference between foolishness and stupidity in this context. Notice how 1 Corinthians says, BUT you are so WISE in Christ. Let me give you some examples that Batterson points out in his book to illustrate this difference.
Zaccheus - The Bible calls him a short man but was eager to see Jesus. He risks looking foolish to all the people around as he climbs a tree in order to see The Savior. Foolish? Maybe. Wise? Certainly!
Noah - No rain in site, yet He listens to God when God tells him to build an Ark. He looked like the biggest Fool to everyone around. I think History can speak for itself in order to prove his Wisdom!
Peter - Jesus calls him to walk on water. Peter risks looking like a fool since in all reality the odds are the second he steps out of the boat he will sink. Yet when he is wise and keeps his eyes on Jesus, he indeed walks on water!
David - The most famous underdog story of all time! David looked like a fool taking on the most powerful and gigantic fighter of the philistine army. Yet David was so wise and knew he had "God-Help" as he attacked his giant with major confidence and authority!
Can Jesus use your life as He used Zaccheus, Noah, Peter, or David? Can He give you confidence and courage? The better question is this: "Are you willing to be a fool for Christ?" Or better yet, do you believe your life is God's Prayer? Do you believe Jesus is interceding for you? Do you believe God hears The Prayers of Jesus for you life? Are you allowing The Holy Spirit to penetrate your soul and live with in you?
Here's the thing, seek after God. He will reveal Himself to you. Go and "climb your tree." "Build your ark." "Walk on water." "Tackle your giant"
Now I want you to notice that there is a difference between foolishness and stupidity in this context. Notice how 1 Corinthians says, BUT you are so WISE in Christ. Let me give you some examples that Batterson points out in his book to illustrate this difference.
Zaccheus - The Bible calls him a short man but was eager to see Jesus. He risks looking foolish to all the people around as he climbs a tree in order to see The Savior. Foolish? Maybe. Wise? Certainly!
Noah - No rain in site, yet He listens to God when God tells him to build an Ark. He looked like the biggest Fool to everyone around. I think History can speak for itself in order to prove his Wisdom!
Peter - Jesus calls him to walk on water. Peter risks looking like a fool since in all reality the odds are the second he steps out of the boat he will sink. Yet when he is wise and keeps his eyes on Jesus, he indeed walks on water!
David - The most famous underdog story of all time! David looked like a fool taking on the most powerful and gigantic fighter of the philistine army. Yet David was so wise and knew he had "God-Help" as he attacked his giant with major confidence and authority!
Can Jesus use your life as He used Zaccheus, Noah, Peter, or David? Can He give you confidence and courage? The better question is this: "Are you willing to be a fool for Christ?" Or better yet, do you believe your life is God's Prayer? Do you believe Jesus is interceding for you? Do you believe God hears The Prayers of Jesus for you life? Are you allowing The Holy Spirit to penetrate your soul and live with in you?
Here's the thing, seek after God. He will reveal Himself to you. Go and "climb your tree." "Build your ark." "Walk on water." "Tackle your giant"
Stop fighting with God and with what He has given you, stop majoring in minors and start living the life He calls you to live. Live without fear or worry and instead with all courage and trust live your life as God's Prayer!
“In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?”- Psalm 56:4
