Smug or Confident — Sunday Thought For The Day

There is a difference between being smug in our faith and being confident of our faith. Do you know how to tell the difference? The simple test is: if we feel out faith is better than another person’s and/or if we feel that we have the idea of faith all worked out — the definition of smug probably fits us.

However, if a person firmly knows and believes that God is with them, that God loves tham, and when they pray God hears and will answer according to His will — that is confidence in the Lord. If a person who can look back at their life with Christ and reflect upon the times that God answered prayers that could not be answered by man, that is confidence. If a person is willing without a moment’s thought to take whatever confronts them immediately to the Lord that person has confidence and is dependent upon God, which is a sign of faith. A person who when they pray and can say “Lord thy will done according to what is best for me.” That person is a person who is confident of their relationship with God. If a person is willing and determined to place all things in God’s hands their faith is strong not because of what they have done, rather because they have submitted their all to God.

If, when we pray we expect God to answer because we are praying according to His will, that is confidence not in our faith, but confidence in God, who hears from heaven. When we pray, if we have doubt lurking in our minds as to whether or not God will really answer our prayer we need to spend time in the scriptures and spend time with God asking Him to correct that. If when we pray we expect and believe that God will answer in a way that is best for us, and that if we are willing to place ourselves, our total beings in His hands asking and trusting Him in total dependence upon Him; then our faith is strong.

However if a person takes exception at that and/or a person is unwilling to submit their lives to God, or if they are only willing to submit a small part of their lives to God, not only is that person’s faith weak, but their walk with the Lord is far from what it should be.

READ: 1 John 5:9-15 (KJV)
9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.

10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son.

11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son.

12 He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life.

13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.

14 And this is the confidence that we have in him, that, if we ask any thing according to his will, he heareth us:

15 And if we know that he hear us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.