WEEK 47 | CONFIDENCE

CONFIDENCE is all about trust and belief. Sports psychologist Dr. Patrick Cohn defines self-CONFIDENCE in athletes as to how firmly athletes believe in their ability to execute a physical skill or perform a task. He says that CONFIDENCE is how strongly you believe in your ability to make or execute a play, and CONFIDENCE comes from past performances, training, and preparation. As your ability and skill grow your confidence grows.

Former NBA player Matt Barnes has a popular podcast where he interviews other athletes. In one of his episodes, Jeremy Lin spoke about his struggles with mental health and his CONFIDENCE . He said:

“The game is 90% mental. At the elite level, everybody has the skills. It's the dude who can shoot 7 times and miss all 7 and not care and shoot the 8th who is different from the person who missed his first 3 and will play it safe from there. There is so much power in the mind.”

I think CONFIDENCE comes from two different places, the work we put in and our faith in God. James 2:14-26 talks about the importance of faith and works:

What does it profit, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can faith save him? If a brother or sister is naked and destitute of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Depart in peace, be warmed and filled,” but you do not give them the things which are needed for the body, what does it profit. Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.

Success starts in the mind. CONFIDENCE starts in your mind and with your thoughts. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he (Proverbs 23:7). If you have CONFIDENT thoughts, you will be CONFIDENT.

The beauty of being a Christian is that we have the ultimate source of power, strength, and grace in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline (2 Timothy 1:7).

But fear and a lack of CONFIDENCE is common. If you don't feel CONFIDENT in all things, you are not alone. The Bible is full of stories of people who were called on by God himself but still doubted. Moses was called to lead the entire nation of Israel out of Egypt, and almost every step of the way he doubted himself. Courage and CONFIDENCE are not the absence of fear. Courage and CONFIDENCE are doing what you are supposed to do in the face of fear.

In an interview, Michael Jordan was asked if fear of failure was a motivator. He said, "I never feared about my skills because I put in the work. Work ethic eliminates fear. If you put forth the work, then what are you fearing? You know what you are capable of and what you are not."

CONFIDENCE comes from putting in the work and finding success then repeating success. As your ability and skill grow your confidence grows.

CONFIDENCE also comes from God. It can be hard to depend on God when we are used to relying on ourselves, but the Bible teaches how to build CONFIDENCE in him and not ourselves.

The first step in finding CONFIDENCE in God is BELIEVING that you can find CONFIDENCE in God. The first step to anything is having the right thoughts, beliefs, and mindsets. If you want to find CONFIDENCE in God, you have to believe that CONFIDENCE is found in God. In Psalm 16:8-9, David wrote, "Because you are close to me and always available, my CONFIDENCE will never be shaken, for I experience your wrap-around presence every moment. My heart and soul explode with joy - full of glory! Even my body will rest CONFIDENT and secure."

The second step is by abiding in Christ. Jesus told His disciples, "If you abide in Me, and My words abide in you, you will ask what you desire, and it shall be done for you. By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit (John 15:7-8)." Abide means to live, continue, or remain, so, to abide in Christ is to live in Him or remain in Him. We can do that through constant and consistent prayer. Pray for everything, and pray through everything. Pray all day, every day. When you wake up, pray that something good happens to you and through you. Before practice, pray that you are able to help others and provide value to your team. Before you go to sleep, pray that your mind and spirit is renewed so that you can wake up ready to be a blessing to others and pray that something happens to you and through you. All things work together for those who believe, and you can do all things through Christ who gives you strength (Romans 8:28 and Philippians 4:13).

A third step is to finding CONFIDENCE in God is by obeying Him in everything that you do. James wrote in James 2:22-23, "You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend." Because Abraham believed God and did what he was told, he was blessed and was called God's friend. That has to be an amazing CONFIDENCE booster.

CONFIDENCE comes from the work that we put in, and through our relationship with God. Through time and effort, we can build our CONFIDENCE.

For a Google doc version of this devotional, click here: Week 47 devo