“God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us. ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.'”
Acts 17:27-28
A woman recently asked me, “Joni, you seem so confident. Have you always been that way?” Inwardly I smiled. If she only knew the knots I feel in my stomach before I speak to a crowd, or the times I’m scared stiff to sit in front of a blank canvas with a paintbrush.
It is called insecurity and, for me, it started in my early scramble to keep up with three older, more athletic sisters. As a four-year-old, I would cling to the saddle horn as my sixteen-hands-high horse galloped behind the steeds of my sisters. I didn’t dare tell them how scared I was!
My life journey has been to put aside those insecurities. My wheelchair has helped. At first, it made me feel more insecure, but over the years God has used the chair to force me to sit still, quit competing, and be quiet before Him. That was all I needed! People are only as secure as the source of their security; if we are secure in Christ, then we have every reason to be confident.
Christian psychologists say that good mental health springs from two things: security and significance. Security in who we are and significance in what we do. Since Christ is the source of peace, joy, strength, and rest, and in Him we live and move and have our very being, we can be secure and feel significant when we place our trust in Jesus.
Lord, there are so many times when I feel afraid and insecure. Today I recognize that in You I live, move, and have my being — my life is secure and significant because I am Your child and Your servant.
