What does confidence look like to you? Well, here’s my take on that question.
Here’s One Extreme
For some, confidence is loud. Dynamic. The superhero! Actually, it looks like a life lived by overcoming all opposition and winning all battles.
To me, that description pushes to the edge of arrogant overconfidence. Why? Because it fails to hear complaints or heed warnings.
Worse yet, when that overconfidence hits a dead-end it simply rewrites history to produce a different ending to the story.
How so? Overconfidence is insistent that “you misunderstood me” or “I never said that.” Unsurprisingly, the problem is always someone else!
What Confidence Looks Like — To Me
For me, confidence is quiet. Poised. It’s more than adequate for the situation at hand.
That quiet, inner confidence doesn’t rely on bluster or show. Rather, it’s grounded in deep insights that are drawn from life experiences.
Consequently, quiet confidence accompanied by life learning overflows into the lives of others to inspire and guide them.
As such, authentic confidence rests within us, just like joy and fulfillment do. Moreover, my quiet confidence is a source of calmness and assurance to those around me.
I have confidence in my choices when I’m careful and deliberative. Additionally, I develop confidence when my choices are based on sound personal values. proverbsforprofessionals.net
The Foundation of Our Confidence
Proverbs 3.21-26 is a brief conversation about the benefits of a precept-driven life.
Ultimately, our confidence (Hebrew kesel) rests in a relationship, Proverbs 3.26: “…the Lord will be your confidence…” That same Hebrew word is translated as “hope” in Psalm 78.7 where we’re to “…hope in God…keep His (precepts).”
In addition, in Job 31.24 and Psalm 49.6-13 we’re warned about the folly of placing our hope or confidence in material things.
Now, back to Proverbs 3.26.
If our confidence is in a divine relationship, what’s the outcome?
In Proverbs 3.26 Solomon says: “…keep your foot (i.e., steps or life’s path) from being taken.” Divine confidence sidesteps the “…wickedness of folly…”, Ecclesiastes 7.25-26, by us not becoming entangled in worldly deception, which is a mark of arrogant overconfidence.
Beware – – materialism and self-consumption must not be the source of our hope. Truly, our ultimate confidence is in a personal relationship with the Lord.
Apply This Today!
We each choose the foundation for our confidence. Unfortunately, it can be the false hope of worldly overconfidence. Or, our confidence can be the calm assurance brought by a life of faith.
We can measure confidence by externals that continually say “look at me!” Better yet, let’s measure confidence by how well our inner self ministers into the lives of others. Thus, we can choose to be a giver of peace and hope.
This post shares an ancient truth. Our confidence, our hope in this life, isn’t based on the temporal. Instead, our confidence is grounded in knowing the eternal precepts as guided by a personal relationship with the eternal God.
I’m Dale Young. My posts share the balanced life to build wise character and guide wise behavior.
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