When did you stop believing in yourself?
As followers of Christ we can sometimes be cinical of the way people always promote self confidence over faith in a "higher power". Humanism is the belief that power comes from within ones self and must be released for one to reach their full potential while faith in God teaches us to reach within ourselves to believe in Him rather than ourselves. If all of this has your head spinning in confusion don't worry, so is mine. However, last week a revelation was given to me in preparation for two youth services. Believing in Jesus is great but if you don't believe in yourself your faith in Jesus if useless.
In Matthew 14.22-33 the record is shared that Jesus is walking on the water with his followers were in a boat. One of the men, Peter, calls out and asks if he can join Jesus. Jesus says "yes" so Peter steps out of the boat and begins to talk on the water! He is actually walking on top of the water! Well... for a moment, then he starts to sink. Why does he sink? Because he starts to doubt. Jesus asks him, "Why did you doubt?" Stop here. If doubt caused Peter to sink, we have to ask our self, who or what did he doubt. Some would be quick to say, "He must have doubted Jesus" but that isn't true because he calls out for Jesus to save him. He doubted himself. He doubted that he could walk on water. He doubted what he could do when he was acting under the command of Jesus. We do the same thing.
Peter knew that Jesus had all power of heaven and earth and that Jesus was the Son of God; what he forgot was that that power had been given to him as well. Peter told himself, "I am man, man cannot walk on the water. I cannot walk on the water!" True. Man cannot walk on the water but man under power of God can. "I can do all thing through Christ who gives me strength." Philippians 4.13.
The next time you tell yourself that you can't do something remember that Jesus said you can. At the same time that we say we believe in Jesus, He is believing in us. As we are trusting Jesus, he is trusting us. Jesus trusts in you enough, and has enough confidence in you that he has trusted you with his love, his salvation, and his word that you can carry it to the world. He believes you can; it is time you start believing that you can too.
