10 Days of Confidence That Will Change EverythingSample

Proceed with Confidence

By nature, I am a relatively cautious person. If pain occurs or if trust is compromised, I have a tendency to think twice before going down that road again. For example: If a curling iron melts my entire thumbprint off, I proceed with caution in the future. If a sketchy business promises me FREE! FREE! FREE! but fails to mention the $TRING$ attached, I proceed with caution in the future.

If a person treats me (or someone I love) like absolute dog doo-doo, I proceed with caution in the future. And transparently, sometimes my own caution tries to build an unhealthy fortress around the perimeters of my wounded heart. Consequently, I’ve had to grow cautious of my own caution! Which sounds funny, and it’s quite a merry-go-round to explain, but maybe you get my drift.

I’ve encountered lots of cynical, pessimistic, and bitter people in my life—and all of them had a history of being burned. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen to them overnight, and their grueling journey was far from pleasant.

But here’s what’s interesting: I’ve also encountered lots of hopeful, optimistic, and joyful people in my life—and they had a history of being burned too! In fact, some of their burns were so bad, it made me wonder why they were still smiling.

However, the difference was clear: The person who embraced wholeness and healing, instead of staying tattered and torn, always chose Jesus. They chose to courageously proceed with confidence in the Lord as their helper rather than fearfully proceeding with caution against whatever could happen next.

Don’t get me wrong, proceeding with caution is okay when rooted in wisdom and discernment. We live in a broken world, and painful circumstances are inevitable. However, we must not allow our caution to override our confidence in Christ. Here’s the truth: No matter how badly we’ve been burned, Jesus will always work things out for our good. He will never break our trust, never cause us to stumble, and never lead us to make a mistake.

Proceed with confidence today. Pursue healing, embrace tenderness, and smile—because His plans for you are always good.

God, I choose to proceed with confidence in You. Create in me a hopeful, optimistic, and joyful heart. Amen.