2021-11-15
2 Corinthians 9:8 MSG
If your sense of well-being comes from any source other than God – including yourself – chances are you will always struggle with insecurity. That’s why Paul wrote: “God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so…you’re ready for anything and everything, more than…ready to do what needs to be done.” Another translation puts it this way: “God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work” (NIV).
As long as you’re trusting in yourself, or others, you will struggle with uncertainty and self-doubt. But once you start trusting in God – what He can do in you, with you, through you, and for you – you begin to feel differently about yourself. Insecurity destroys your self-esteem by making you feel unqualified and undeserving. And here is the worst part: often it means you can’t be taught, can’t accept honest criticism, and therefore you can’t grow. The thing you need most – good input – becomes the last thing you’re willing to accept because you’re afraid to let anyone know you’re less than perfect.
Consequently, you find it hard to confront challenges and seize the opportunities that come your way. Deep down, you feel incompetent, unaccepted, disapproved of, and rejected. In short: Insecurity is an “inside job!” With that in mind, take an honest look at your life right now. Go ahead; it’s safe, no one else is looking! The only person who will benefit from this is you. Then turn to God and say, “Lord, everything I need to succeed in life I have in you!”
Soul food: 2 Chr 5-7; John 11:1-16; Ps 83:9-18; Prov 26:17-22
2 Korintiërs 9:8 DB
As jou sin van selfwaarde van enige ander bron as God – insluitend jouself – af kom, is die kans goed dat jy altyd met onsekerheid sal worstel. Dis hoekom Paulus skryf: ‘Nee, eintlik oorlaai Hy julle met sy genade sodat julle altyd oorgenoeg van alles het. Julle het geen gebrek op geestelike of materiële gebied nie. Daarom kan julle altyd goed doen en ander mense help…’ Solank as wat jy op jouself of ander mense staatmaak, sal jy met onsekerheid en selftwyfel sukkel.
Sodra jy egter begin om God te vertrou – wat Hy in jou, met jou, deur jou en vir jou kan doen – sal jy anders oor jouself begin voel. Onsekerheid vernietig jou selfbeeld deur jou ongekwalifiseerd en onwaardig te laat voel. Die ergste daarvan is dat dit dikwels beteken dat jy nie geleer kan word nie, nie eerlike kritiek kan aanvaar nie en dat jy as gevolg daarvan, nie kan groei nie.
Dit wat jy die meeste nodig het – goeie insette – word die laaste ding wat jy gewillig is om te aanvaar, omdat jy bang is dat mense sal agterkom dat jy nie perfek is nie. Gevolglik vind jy dit moeilik om uitdagings aan te pak en geleenthede wat oor jou pad kom, aan te gryp. Diep binne-in jou voel jy onbekwaam, onaanvaarbaar, afkeuringswaardig en verwerp. Met dit in gedagte, neem nou eerlik jou lewe in perspektief. Gaan voort; dis veilig, niemand kyk vir jou nie! Die enigste persoon wat hieruit voordeel sal trek, is jy. Draai dan na God toe en sê: ‘Here, alles wat ek in die lewe nodig het om sukses te behaal, het ek in U!’
Sielskos: 2 Kro 5-7; Joh 11:1-16; Ps 83:9-18; Spr 26:17-22
2 Corinthians 9:8 MSG
Insecurity destroys our self-esteem by making us feel unqualified and undeserving. It can make us feel afraid to let anyone know we’re less than perfect, so we resist being taught and take offence at honest criticism. The advice and constructive criticism that we need in order to grow become the last things we’re willing to accept. And if we don’t allow growth to take place, we’ll find it difficult to face increasing challenges and we won’t be empowered to seize opportunities that come our way. Deep down, we may feel incompetent, unaccepted, disapproved of, and rejected.
If our sense of well-being and confidence comes from any source (and that includes ourselves) other than God, it’s very likely that we’ll always struggle with insecurity. That’s why Paul wrote: ‘God can pour on the blessings in astonishing ways so…you’re ready for anything and everything, more than…ready to do what needs to be done.’ Another translation puts it this way: ‘God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work’ (NIV).
As long as we’re trusting in ourselves or in others, we’ll struggle with uncertainty and self-doubt. But the moment we start trusting in God and what He can do in us, with us, through us, and for us, we begin to feel differently about ourselves. As we spend more time with Him and learn to see ourselves through His eyes, His approval and love will fill our hearts, and we’ll be able to confidently say, ‘Lord, everything I need to succeed in life I have in you!’
2 Chr 5-7; John 11:1-16; Ps 83:9-18; Prov 26:17-22
2021-11-14
2 Corinthians 3:5-6 NIV
Insecurity can sideline you. When you feel like you’re unqualified and unworthy of success, self-doubt can make you act in ways that sabotage your chances to be successful. The truth is, it’s impossible to live for long on a level that’s inconsistent with how you see yourself. And one of the biggest problems with insecurity is that it’s almost impossible to acknowledge, so you don’t deal with it and overcome it.
Why is that? Because you’re afraid that an admission of vulnerability will (1) weaken you in other people’s eyes, (2) empower and embolden your critics, and (3) give your competitors an advantage. Insecurity makes you keep others at a distance. It means living without the counsel and support of the very people whose input can help you to succeed. Bottom line: You have a hard time trusting other people because you have a hard time trusting yourself!
It’s not a new phenomenon. Recorded in the Old Testament, Zophar said to Job, “In his self-sufficiency he will be in distress” (Job 20:22 NKJV). Note the word “distress,” then think of the word “stress.” Your insecurity will whisper, “If people really knew me, they wouldn’t love me, respect me, follow me, invite me, or invest in me.” So…what’s the answer?
Paul has it! He writes, “Not that we are competent…to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God. He has made us competent.” The first step to overcoming insecurity is to draw your self-worth from God and learn to see yourself through His eyes. And you can only do that by spending time with Him in prayer and reading His Word each day.
Soul food: Num 9:15-23; Exo 24:15-18; Matt 17:1-8; Acts 1:9-11
2 Corinthians 3:5-6 NIV
Ever heard of imposter syndrome? It’s something we can experience when we don’t see ourselves as capable and worthy of where we are, and we think we’re less competent than others believe us to be. The truth is, these feelings of insecurity can stop us in our tracks. When we feel like we’re not qualified for the task we’ve been given, our self-doubt can even make us act in ways that prevent us from completing it successfully, or even at all.
One of the biggest problems with insecurity is that it’s incredibly difficult to acknowledge, so we don’t bring it into the open and can’t work towards overcoming it. We can be afraid of admitting we’re feeling vulnerable because we think that it’ll weaken us in other people’s eyes, give them ammunition to criticise us, and give others an unfair advantage over us.
Insecurity can make it difficult for us to trust others, so we keep them at a distance and miss out on the counsel and support of people who could help us. Insecurity will whisper to us, ‘If people really knew you, they wouldn’t love you, respect you, invite you, trust you, or spend their time and effort on you.’ So we keep hiding it.
But God has provided us with an answer to our insecurities. Paul wrote, ‘Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.’ The first step towards overcoming insecurity is to start drawing our self-worth from God and learning to see ourselves through His eyes. And we can only do that by spending time with Him in prayer and reading His Word each day.
Num 9:15-23; Exo 24:15-18; Matt 17:1-8; Acts 1:9-11
