My plan had been to buy shoes on the way to replace the now obviously worn ones that used to work well with the outfit I had packed. Google didn't mention my trek was minus any shoe place. Um, wait...this was pre-Google.
Now nearly midnight, I had to accept my shoe fate, so I prayed for direction:
God, these are women. They'll notice my shoes without a doubt. I don't want that to be a distraction, or quite honestly, a temptation to judge me. How do I handle this?I know God answered:
Tell them about your shoes.It was like a puzzle piece snapping into place. I opened the workshop by taking off one shoe, holding it up, and saying, "I just want you to know that I know my shoes are in terrible shape. I simply ran out of options (and shoe places) on my way here and I didn't want you being distracted by wondering why in the world I didn't do something about it."
Well, that broke the ice. It's like I pushed through some invisible film of fear of judgment. We had a good laugh and they generously embraced my vulnerability.
Is that at the heart of confidence? Smashing fear of judgment with vulnerability, and then letting God put the pieces back together with His amazing newness?
We are going to be working out of 1 Corinthians 10 for the next several days. It's where Paul says:
Forget about self-confidence; it's useless.Sort of contrary to today's messaging, isn't it? What is the difference in confidence and self-confidence? Which do we need--and how do we find it--to proceed in this precarious world?
After all, a girl may find herself with the wrong shoes. We surely need a plan for that.
Comments are welcome at feedyourstrength@gmail.com.
