Deep Insecurity, Part 5: Deep Confidence

Prayer prepares my heart:

Pray about your lack of trust in God. What areas of your life are you unwilling to trust God with, and how has this affected your desire to pray? How has it affected your desire to read your Bible?

Scripture sets my mind:

This is what the LORD says: “Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans, who rely on human strength and turn their hearts away from the LORD. [6] They are like stunted shrubs in the desert, with no hope for the future. They will live in the barren wilderness, in an uninhabited salty land.

[7] “But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence. [8] They are like trees planted along a riverbank, with roots that reach deep into the water. Such trees are not bothered by the heat or worried by long months of drought. Their leaves stay green, and they never stop producing fruit.

Jeremiah 17:5-8 NLT

When we fail to trust God, we become insecure because, in our hearts, we realize how little control we have over life. The goal of our study is to remove our insecurity and replace it with confidence in God.

Questions focus my reading:

Reading I Samuel we are going to focus on Saul and his relationship with God. Saul was one of the most insecure people in all of scripture. He continually sought to gain control over what he could not control instead of seeking God. As a result, he was constantly filled with fear, became paranoid, and lived an emotionally isolated and lonely life.

There are 31 chapters in I Samuel, so we will tackle between 3-6 per day. You can also read the post on “Deep Insecurity” which might increase your awareness while you read.

Read, annotate, note:

While you are reading, there are three areas to notate:

1. What was Saul like before he became king, and how would you describe his relationship with God at that time?
2. What was Saul like under the influence of Samuel, and how did spending time with Samuel change his relationship with God?
3. What about becoming king changed him and his relationship with God?

Probe, examine, reflect:

Your reading should help you understand how confidence is gained and lost. It should also help you understand the dangerous impact of insecurity ignored.

Take time to probe your heart and examine your top 3-5 insecurities. Reflect on how you can change your relationship with God, so you can replace your human insecurities with godly confidence.

Prayer, faith, power:

Pray through your insecurities every day, and see them as a way to understand your need for God. Spend time exalting God and realizing that his greatness more than makes up for your weakness. Use your insecurity to develop greater intimacy with God.

Identify:

Saul never seemed to genuinely experience the love of God. What can you do so you are able to – experience God’s love; become content, grateful, and happy with who you are; and trust God to do great things in your life?

Share:

Select 4-6 people with whom you can share your insecurities and ask for their help to put your confidence in God. This means you are going to need daily encouragement to focus on God’s strengths instead of your weaknesses.

Decide:

This is going to be difficult. Decide to stop seeking control and instead seek God, trusting that whatever God gives you is exactly what you need to be happy.

Act:

Develop three studies from I Samuel on how to overcome insecurity. Find three people who share your struggle with insecurity, and decide to help each other become secure people whose confidence is in God.