Isaiah 30:15 For the Lord God, the Holy One of Israel, says: Only in returning to me and waiting for me will you be saved; in quietness and confidence is your strength; but you would have none of this.
No, you say. We will get our help from Egypt (the world). They will give us swift horses for riding to battle.
But the only swiftness you are going to see is the swiftness of your enemies chasing you! One of them will chase a thousand of you! Five of them will scatter you until not two of you are left together. You will be like lonely trees on the distant mountaintops. Yet the Lord waits to be gracious to you, and he exalts himself to show mercy to you. For the Lord is a God of justice; Blessed are all those who wait for him to help them.
Quietness – Be still and know. The ‘me’ self that lives the ‘never enough’ life with a sense of being unfulfilled, separate from what life is meant to be, is not at rest and is chronically anxious. The notion that God is absent is the fundamental illusion of humanity, but God is present, in the centre of our being.
Matthew 11:28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light. (Hebrews 12:1) (2Corinthians 10:4)
Confidence – Body, Soul, and Spirit.
A confident person is one who knows what they are aiming at and is motivated to trust that as having the highest meaning and purpose for their life. This becomes the inner strength that moves within them to overcome all obstacles.
Pull out of rat race (Egypt), be still and know your purpose (Quietness), commit to action (Confidence).
Body – Two opposing neurological behaviour systems.
Cortisol/adrenalin hormone sequence – the rat race reaction - is activated when your goals and aims and expectations are uncertain or out of reach - anxiety and stress and resentment kick in.
Dopamine, a hormonal neurotransmitter – the confidence reaction, is activated when you know you’re on track with the thing that you aspire to - the motivational component of reward-motivated behaviour. It helps with the buoyancy in the struggle to overcome the obstacles of staying on track. The advantage of this human wiring system can be used for good or bad purposes.
Soul – Aim at the right thing… Philippians 3:14 Press toward the goal for God’s highest invitation to you…
The mind must comprehend the conviction of truth that it believes in. The emotions then buoyantly and courageously rise to a hope and expectation of victory and success. Get into the place of quietness and confidence and encourage your best self. Then the will becomes determined in its action. (no confidence in the flesh Phil 3:3)( Heb 10:36 reward)
Spirit – The Spirit of God MOVES us forward (a MOVE of God!). Being led is more than just following.
Romans 8:14 For all who are led (ago - Moved) by the Spirit of God are sons and daughters of God, and share his Kingdom purpose and resources. Greater is he that is within us than he that is in the world.
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