But I am here to tell you I appreciate you. I appreciate you sitting in the pews faithfully every Sunday morning. I appreciate you tithing. I appreciate you serving. I appreciate you holding open the door for that little old lady who took 2 hours to get dressed in her Sunday best because her favorite part of the week is going to church, because in truth, that is the only time she ever gets to leave her house. And when that dashing young man holds the door open for her, that smile that appears on her face won't leave until next Sunday.
You do all of these great things, yet you have no confidence in yourself.
To describe confidence let me first tell you what it isn't.
It isn't constantly looking for affirmation from your friends. It isn't letting others decide what you will stand for. It isn't bringing others down so you can be on top. And it definitely isn't what is in your wallet.
Confidence is knowing that God created you with a purpose. That you were put on this Earth to do something that is far greater than yourself. Whatever you are thinking you are going to do is already too small in comparison to what God has in store for you. Once you have confidence in who God is, you will have confidence in who you are because you will know that God doesn't make mistakes. You weren't a slip up, an accident, a whoops (no matter what your parents tell you). You were a carefully thought out creation. When God finished molding you in your mother's womb, He looked at you and said, "This is good." You were made in His image. You were made in the most powerful, intellectual, loving, gentle, man's image. So why do you have no confidence?
I recently have been reading Exodus. Exodus is pretty sweet because it has the overall theme of salvation. It's all about how God came to save His people. Many people believe that Moses wrote Exodus. Yes, Moses, he's the one who God gave the power to changed his staff into a snake, and take away leprosy from his hand, and Moses was also the one who parted the Red Sea AND was given the Ten Commandments by God. Moses did A LOT. Would you be surprised though to know that Moses had about zero, nada, zilch confidence in himself? God set a bush on fire in the middle of the forest to get Moses' attention and basically told Moses that he was going to be the one to lead God's people out of Egypt. Then Moses was like, listen God I love you and all, but you see, I can't talk to Pharaoh because I stutter when I speak, so just go ahead and send my brother Aaron instead. God was furious. He hand picked Moses to do this important task. He made this universe so He has the authority and foresight to pick to pick the most capable person. He knows who fits the job best and God, again, doesn't make mistakes. How many times have you made excuses to count yourself out of a job that God has called you to do. I am not strong enough, my faith isn't good enough, blah blah blah. You are a son of God. He put you on this Earth for a purpose. Just because one girl doesn't take interest in you, you can't bench 150, or that pimple on your forehead just won't go away, doesn't mean you should lack confidence in who you are.
One thing that Moses started to learn though, is that every time he trusted God, things seemed to work out. This did not give him confidence in himself, but confidence in who God is, and he could accomplish anything through God. Bring on the Red Sea. As the Egyptians were closing in and the Israelites were trapped between mountains on one side and the Red Sea on the other, Moses had to choose. Would he have bold confidence in God or would he doubt God's plan for Him. As you probably know Moses chose to trust God. With God, Moses parted the Red Sea and the Israelites passed through and made it to freedom.
Confidence is hard for everyone, but it is especially hard for guys becuase we have avoided it. We talk all about how girls lack confidence and how to give it to them, but guys have sadly slipped under the radar. The best advice I can give is seek out an older Godly male mentor. One that you can soak up every bit of knoweledge from. The second best piece of advice I can give, is date and marry cheerleaders. Date girls who believe in you, don't just date girls for their looks. I promise you if her biggest worry is what she is going to wear in the morning or if her latte is instagram worthy, she is not the girl who is going to give you confidence to be the Young Christian Man you need to be. Yes, she may be a 10/10, but a relationship based totally on physical appearance will cause you more trouble than it's worth and destroy your confidence. Marry a girl who wants you to succeed, one who looks you in the eye and says, "I know you can do this." When a girl tells a guy this, he could basically jump the Grand Canyon and if she doesn't, he won't even try. Finally, don't be afraid of failure. Failure is scary, but it is also an opportunity to see who you trust in times of disappointment.
Do not harbor doubts about the ability that God has given you. You are not a mistake, you were created with a purpose that is far greater than the way that you look. Have faith to believe in the words God has spoken to you. For when you do this who will have to power to move mountains, or maybe even part the Red Sea.