A Confident Heart: Week 1 - I Believe

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I have always had a lot of trouble with anxiety. I don't exactly where it came from, but I find that I tend to worry a lot and I get overwhelmed very easily. I stress out  and get depressed and then it all starts over again. I despise conflict. I want everyone to get along and I get upset when I think someone might be upset with me.

I believe that we live in a mean world, which makes sense since it is a fallen world filled with sin. So, these negative things that I have issues with come up often, especially since I am an imperfect woman living in a fallen world surrounded by a whole bunch of other imperfect people.

I've believed a lot of negative things about myself:

• I wasn't good enough.
• I wasn't smart enough.
• I wasn't pretty enough.
• I wasn't talented enough.
• I wasn't strong enough.
• I simply wasn't enough.

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Then Jesus got a hold of my heart and He began to change me. He began to make me see that I am exactly how He made me.

Jeremiah 1:5 -- "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart;
I appointed you as a prophet to the nations."

I slowly, over time, began to accept the positive things that God had to say about me instead of the negative things the world had to say about me. 

I believe when I am weak, His strength flows through me:

2 Corinthians 12:10 -- "That’s why I take pleasure in my weaknesses, and in the insults, hardships, persecutions, and troubles that I suffer for Christ. For when I am weak, then I am strong."

I believe God is good!

Psalm 136:1 -- "Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever."

I believe anything is possible when we believe in the power of Jesus Christ!

Mark 9:23 -- "What do you mean, 'If I can'?" Jesus asked. "Anything is possible if a person believes."

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You see, what happened was, I got so caught up in what others think and everything I did, would or could do wrong. I forgot about the power of being obedient to God. I wouldn't follow through because I was afraid of the outcome. I would become paralyzed that I would do something or say something that would upset somebody. So I didn't say anything. I didn't do anything. God wants so much more than that for me. And God wants so much more than that for you too.

We still live in a mean world, but I make an effort not to focus on the negative things the world has to offer or to say anymore. Instead, I look at the positive things God has to say about me. I am His "treasured possession."

Deuteronomy 7:6 -- "For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession."

I reach out and bring God's love (John 3:16), His light (Psalm 27:1) and His peace (John 14:27) and hold it close to my heart. I let it fill me to overflowing. I still have anxiety attacks sometimes, but it doesn't consume me like it once did. Now I can look to Jesus and have faith that He will guard and guide me through my journey in this life. 

John 3:16 -- "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life."

Psalm 27:1 -- "The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?"

John 14:27 -- "Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid."

Always...

Romans 12:12 -- "Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer."

Building 429 recorded a song called "I Believe" that I would like to share with you.

The chorus is:

"I believe love is the answer

I believe love will find a way."

There are times where I have gotten so caught up in how things are going wrong, I forget to look out for the ways things are going right. When we put Jesus first in our lives, we can see the hope that only He can bring. I do believe that the love of Jesus Christ is always the answer. I believe that no matter what tragedy, circumstance, mistake, or struggle that I come up against, Christ's love will find a way to prevail. God is in control of this messy world we live in and He does all thing for good, according to His purpose.

Romans 8:28 -- "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose."

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This inspiration comes from a 

Bible study I am doing through 

Proverbs 31 Ministries on 

"A Confident Heart" 

by Renee Swope.