Self Esteem/Confidence

Self Esteem/Confidence


"You formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother's womb. I praise you, so wonderfully you made me; wonderful are your works! My very self you knew; my bones were not hidden from you, When I was being made in secret, fashioned as in the depths of the earth. Your eyes foresaw my actions; in your book all are written down; my days were shaped, before one came to be. How precious to me are your designs, O God; how vast the sum of them! Were I to count, they would outnumber the sands; to finish, I would need eternity." Psalm 139: 13-18

"Are not five sparrows sold for two small coins? Yet not one of them has escaped the notice of God.
Even the hairs of your head have all been counted. Do not be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows." Luke 12:6-7

"My son, with humility have self-esteem; prize yourself as you deserve. Who will acquit him who condemns himself? who will honor him who discredits himself?" Sirach 10:27-28

"I have the strength for everything through him who empowers me." Philippians 4:13

"For we are the handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them." Ephesians 2:10

"Do not judge from his appearance or from his lofty stature, because I have rejected him. Not as man sees does God see, because man sees the appearance but the Lord looks into the heart." 1 Samuel 16:7

"For no one hates his own flesh but rather nourishes and cherishes it, even as Christ does the church,
because we are members of his body." Eph. 5: 29-30

"They that hope in the LORD will renew their strength, they will soar as with eagles' wings; They will run and not grow weary, walk and not grow faint." Isaiah 40:31

"Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that of ourselves we are qualified to take credit for anything as coming from us; rather, our qualification comes from God, who has indeed qualified us as ministers of a new covenant, not of letter but of spirit; for the letter brings death, but the Spirit gives life."
2 Cor. 3: 4-6

"I rejoice, because I have confidence in you in every respect." 2 Corinthians 7:16

"Not that we dare to class or compare ourselves with some of those who recommend themselves. But when they measure themselves by one another and compare themselves with one another, they are without understanding. For it is not the one who recommends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord recommends. 2 Cor. 10: 12,18

"Beloved, if (our) hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence in God" 1 John 3:21

"I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, your spiritual worship. Do not conform yourselves to this age but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and pleasing and perfect.

For by the grace given to me I tell everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than one ought to think, but to think soberly, each according to the measure of faith that God has apportioned. Rom. 12: 1-3

Self esteem is how you feel about yourself and confidence is the assurance that God is with you in whatever you do or say.  How do you feel about your looks, personality and abilities? Your opinion of yourself usually depends on how you have learned to think of yourself from the important people in your life who love you or the opinions and beliefs of strangers as you grow. You have to remember that you are loved by God your Creator and you must honor him by loving Him, yourself and others. You were designed for greatness. You shouldn't settle for less than what you are truly worth.

Despite what the world says, your worth is not the sum of your appearance, your abilities and how rich you are or how the culture thinks you should fit in.  How do you see yourself? Do you define yourself by how many trophies you have or how much you have in the bank?  It's not about what the world values with looks, brains, wealth and talent but God looks at your character, your attitude, your generosity and your faithfulness. Are you more concerned about looking good or doing good? You need to do the best you can with what the Lord has given you. You also need to try and live for Him and less for you. You have to realize that you can love and be loved and you need others as they need you.

You exist by the will and wisdom of the God who made you for Himself to know, honor and enjoy Him forever. God should be the most important person in your life because He not only made you but he cares and loves you more than anyone can imagine. You need to think of yourself as the person God says you are to reshape the way you think about yourself.  He alone can give you every reason to feel good about yourself. You need to accept your imperfectness, limitations and what you cannot change. You can rise above your problems and circumstances and take control of what you can but let God do the rest. Even though we have weakness and are flawed by human nature because of original sin with our first parents, Adam and Eve; in God's eyes you are adequate, likeable, valuable and needed.

You should have a good, healthy, high self esteem but one with humility and not have too high of an opinion of yourself.  To achieve this, you need to understand your dependence on God and on one another. You need to put your confidence in God and not just yourself and the opinion of others.  If you feel you have nothing to offer then you'll probably act like you don't, if you think poorly of yourself and think you're going to fail, then you will  act poorly. On the other hand, if you know you have something to offer in life, then you'll make a positive difference in others lives. You won't back away from relationships and you'll have what it takes to handle any challenges that come your way. You must think well of yourself to meet your own goals and expectations.  Self-esteem and confidence are something you need if you expect to grow in your faith. Getting on a bike for the first time showed that you had confidence in yourself and in the person helping you. Jesus wants you to place your confidence in Him, for He is your strength and will carry you through any situation in life. Just like you didn't learn to ride a bike in a flash, you need to wait patiently for Jesus to fulfill your needs.

In your walk with Christ, you can by His Spirit be anything He wants you to be, do anything He wants you to do and say anything He wants you to say.  But Jesus also wants you to put Him ahead of every other relationship. God sees everything more clearly than you do so you need to trust Him for your needs. If you completely rely on God, you will find dignity and self-acceptance. It is normal to feel discouraged by your failure because that shows that you care about yourself. You were made to serve God and feel good about the privilege of being one of His servants. If you serve anything other than God, you will feel empty and unfulfilled. You just need to depend on Him to resist temptation and overcome the struggles and obstacles in your life.

Your soul and spirit can only be filled by giving of yourself. It's not about having or getting the latest and greatest electronic...it's about contributing and not acquiring things. So you can try and do something for someone every week, thinking of others rather than yourself. Other ways to boost your self-esteem are to think positively about yourself and catch yourself when you say something negative about yourself and replace it with an affirmation or something good. Satan sometimes will have his hand on the recorder in your brain....with his themes of shame, guilt and defeat. But hearing the true voice of God and seeing God the right way, you will always triumph in making wise decisions and choices with His help.

Furthermore, you can write down a list of reasons why you are valuable and put it on a mirror and read it every day. Also read your Bible and you'll renew your mind with the words and thoughts of God. There you will find self-respect, self-acceptance and see yourself from heaven's point of view. And don't forget that trying new things, exercise and getting outdoors have been proven to boost your spirits as well. You must give up your own will and follow the will of God. Believe you can do anything God enables you to do. If you are faithful to the plan God reveals to you, you will be successful. And as you succeed by figuring out His plan for you, your self-confidence will soar.