Welcome to Week 4 of our exciting Summer Sizzle Series. This series is a collection of the top posts shared by Eight amazing blogger friends here. Each of these ladies are transparent in their writings about their love for Christ , and their vulnerabilities.

In case you missed the last three weeks of reading –

Week 1 by Deb Wolf  : When you don’t have words to pray

Week 2 by Dawn Klinge :  Trusting God’s Grace in deepest waters

Week 3 by Carmen Brown : Should you teach your children about spiritual warfare? 

Today , I would love to introduce the beautiful Valerie Murray who is a wife, mom of 4 , and someone who has braved fear in different areas of her life.

Do you want to be confident in who God made you to be? 

Do feelings of insecurity hold you back from moving forward with something God has put on your heart to pursue?

But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.  Jeremiah 17:7

Through this post, I want to share some more specific ways you can stand with assurance when God calls you to live out your purpose and calling.

 Here are 5 Essential steps to being a Confident Christian Woman ;

Appreciate the Gifts and Abilities God Has Given You

Just as our confidence comes “in him,” our gifts and abilities also come from the Lord.  They are given to us by his grace and put to use by his grace. Knowing God gives me the grace to use my gifts, makes me bold so I can step out in faith when I feel God prompting me to do something.

We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. Romans: 12:6 NIV

And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work.  2 Corinthians 9:8 ESV

Remember God Makes You Adequate

Sometimes God calls us to do things that are out of our comfort zone–maybe even minister in a way we don’t feel gifted or qualified in. He may want us to fill a need that doesn’t align with our “gifts” or that we just don’t really feel like doing.

If God is calling you to serve in or out of your ability level, He will make you an adequate servant.

I was in a traveling church choir in high school, even though I’m not gifted with a great singing voice. I’m scared to death to speak in front of groups, but I’ve shared my testimony in MOPS, women’s Bible studies, and church.

Such confidence we have through Christ toward God. Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate servants of the new covenant. 2 Corinthians 3:4

Don’t Compare Yourself to Others

I wish I could add the following to my blog bio description: Speaker. I admire women who speak because they just seem so confident in who God made them to be.

But I just don’t feel called to be a public speaker—at least not yet. Lord, Please Don’t Send Me to Africa, that song from the 90’s comes to mind. (I know, I’m dating myself.)

I love writing because I don’t feel like I communicate well verbally. In my very first blog post I wrote:

“I have always had a passion for writing and  feel like I speak two languages and am only fluent in one. I cannot speak the thoughts I’m able to write down. The person who I really am is the one hidden behind the words that are stirring in my heart and mind. These words are not capable of expressing themselves verbally. They are only expressed when they flow from my mind to my fingers.” 

There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. 1 Corinthians 12: 4-6

Wishing to be gifted like someone else is silly.

Just check out this verse:

Now if the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be?

If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body. 1 Corinthians 12:15-20 NIV 

Our abilities and gifts may be different, but our purpose is the same—to live out His calling in our lives. 

So Christ himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip his people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Ephesians 4: 11-13 NIV 

 Let God Use Your Weakness to Show His Strength 

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, , for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Corinthians 12:9 NIV

I experienced intense anxiety before those public speaking engagements. But every single time, as soon as I began speaking, God’s peace overcame me. The power of the Holy Spirit took over my nerves and even my shaking hands.

Even in our areas of giftedness, we may doubt our capability. I just read a FB thread in my writing group from authors who have secured book contracts after years of pursuing a message God laid on their heart. But suddenly they feel paralyzed by the expectation of their gift, and fear suddenly blocks the flow of words.

God will often stop us in our tracks to show us where the power comes from. He will use draft after draft and effort after effort to perfect His strength in us so that we might feel God’s power working through us as we rest in His strength and not our own.

Be Brave and Say Yes to the Next Step 

Each time I take the next step and do the next thing I build up my confidence in Christ and experience God’s grace and power firsthand.  

In 100 Days to Brave, Annie F. Downs says, 

I never felt brave. But day after day, I just did the next thing, took the next step, said the next yes.

Now I find myself lifting my foot for the next step with a little less fear and a little more confidence–because I know when my foot lands on the ground, God is already there. He’s my sure foundation. The solid rock upon which I stand.

Truly he is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken. Psalm 62:6 NIV

Reflection :

–What changes do you see making for yourself to be confident in Christ?

–How do you see yourself as a Confident Christian woman this year? I would love for you to share in the comments below.

About Valerie

Valerie Murray is a wife of 21 years and a busy mom to 4 energetic children. She writes at ValerieMurray.com about keeping faith and family strong through Christ. Her heart’s desire is to offer hope to others and declare the glory of God in her life through her writing. Her mission is to offer encouragement to struggling marriages, overwhelmed moms and people striving to face their fears and know their worth. Coffee, chocolate and a good movie always make her happy! You can find her on Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, StumbleUpon, Instagram & Google+.