Today's Daily Lesson is from 2 Corinthians chapter 2 verses 4-6:
"4 Such is the confidence that we have through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who has made us sufficient . . ."
When it comes to doing what we do confidence really does make all the difference. In whatever we do, if we doubt we have what it takes to be successful, it is a guarantee that we will not be successful. If we have a CD tracking in our minds saying, "Not good enough, not smart enough, not gifted enough, not fit enough for the task at hand," then soon enough we'll stumble and fall. Psychologists call it a self-fulfilling prophecy. It is the way the ego-self, told from a young age that it is inadequate and even worthless, finally takes its own life.
The only way to break free all this is to get outside the ego-self and to begin living into the Christ-self. When the Apostle Paul says he has "confidence", his confidence does not come from anything within his self. His confidence - his steeled sense of readiness for whatever life throws his way, his ability to speak truth to power, his courage to walk aboard ships heading for rough seas, his calm demeanor even in the face of almost-certain death - all come from a power greater than Paul. It comes from the Christ.
Many of us struggle with inadequacies. And it's true; alone we are inadequate for the tasks at hand. But we are not alone. God is with us. And with God on our side - better yet, with God inside - we have all we need to rise to to today's challenges.
Somebody wise once said, "God plus one is a majority." That's pretty incredible news, so long as the one believes it.
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