Hi friends! I am so excited to start this “Confident Heart” journey with you!
We have almost 8000 women from around the US and the world signed up! I’ve been closing my eyes and picturing us gathering together in small groups (cause I’m a small group kinda girl). Anyhow, it’s so amazing to be here with YOU learning how we can live beyond our doubts by finding our security and confidence in the power of God’s loves and promises!
The first thing I want you to remember is: This is YOUR journey.
You’ll be reading the chapters. You will be asking and listening for God to speak to your heart. You’ll be the one who takes time to highlight sentences, promises and quotes you want to remember.
You’ll be looking for ways to apply and live what you are learning. You’ll be answering reflection questions and interacting with the group.
You’ll be doing the faith-work of not only believing in God, but really believing God.
I’ll be shepherding, leading, praying, encouraging, connecting and pacing us. I’ll be sharing more of my story – and inviting co-leaders who are helping me with the study to share theirs.
I’ll be praying for you, encouraging you, believing in you and challenging you – but you will make the heart investment and be the one who gets out pretty close to as much as you put in.
Here are a few IMPORTANT reminders:
What’s Needed: A copy of the book, a notebook, a Bible, and a ready-for-God- to-do-a-new-thing in you attitude!
When We’ll Meet: Because we’ll meet online, you can check in at your convenience any time of the day and week.
(Day 1) Assignment
Read the Acknowledgements. This will give you a peak into my current personal life and I’ll be asking you to share about yourself later this week too. 🙂
Read Chapter 1.
- If you don’t have your book yet, you can click here to read Chapter 1 .
- Highlight verses and sentences that grab your attention or tug on your heart.
- Write down what you sense God is speaking to your heart in the margins of your book or in a journal/notebook.
- If you’ve already read chapter 1, share your thoughts here. And then take time to look up the verses mentioned in the chapter prayer and answer the questions at the end of the chapter.
Connecting in Community: Click “Share Your Thoughts” below and let’s all answer this question:
What sentences in Chapter 1 resonate with your heart or speak to you in a personal way? How did you relate to my story in this chapter?
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Jfrink,
We’re never alone plus God is in our lives.
So we’re very lucky that we r not Alone.
Thanks 🙂
Jfrink,
Fear is a huge blocker in people’s lives. We
just have to have faith. Thanks for sharing
Godbless 🙂
I have often struggled with self-doubt but never associated it with being out of God’s will until I read “These voices of insecurity that cast shadows of doubt over our perspective and keep us from becoming the women we want to be -the women God created us to be.”. It is amazing how one sentence can change your entire perspective. I am a (very new at it) single mother and am continually trying to build my two young daughters’ confidence. This has shown me a new way to show them that their doubts are not of God and believing those doubts will make us fall out of God’s will. Thank you, Renee, for sharing this angle of self-doubt in your study!
The part about not just Believing in him…but Believe him. That really hit home…my lack of trust interfers with me believing in to many things. “Those that hope in me will not be disappointed” thats what it all boils down to. If we do not trust others or ourselves then how do we trust in God. I believe this study will be a huge lesson in trusting God, myself and others. If I can trust God then I feel like I will learn to trust myself and the lack of confidence will be erased and I can truly live the life I am suppose to live.
I too am SO excited for this study! The Lord has been calling to me recently but I’ve been struggling to listen to HIM and hear what HE has to say. I’m praying that through this exercise and lots of prayer that I will learn to trust in HIM by trusting in HIS words. I’m ready to stop asking others to fill up my heart shaped cup and learn to lean on HIM!
Joyce,
Thanks your absolutely right time to get out
of our comfort zone. Thanks for sharing take
care Godbless 🙂
My husband died it will be 6 yrs ago this June. I married him when in was 18…was married 23 yrs when he died….I recently was dating a man for almost 3 yrs, I knew he was not who God had chosen for me but because of my insecurities and doubts I stayed in this relationship much longer then I knew I should of. It has only been 2 months since I broke up with him so my heart is still healing, but I let this man shake my foundation…and create even more insecurities then I already were battling…I am hoping this book helps teach me how to be so confident in myself that I can never be shaken again!! I know God has a plan and purpose for my life but it has been hard dealing with the loneliness….I want to believe God more then anything!! that’s why I am here doing this study!…:)
Pam, my husband also went to be with Jesus after 30 years of marriage and I was devastated, but God in His faithfulness has brought beauty out of the ashes and I believe that’s what He wants for you too!
Hearts need time to heal and 2 months is not a long time, I will pray for your heart and for your loneliness!!
Please stay with this Bible study to the end, I know it will help you to heal and to grow in His strength.
He is faithful and you are worthy of His love. Take all you thoughts captive and align them with the truth about who you are in Jesus! He loves you and you are His creation, perfect in His eyes.
I would ask others to pray for Pam too, being a widow is so hard and you don’t know until you get there yourself!
I’m so sorry for what you have gone through. I married my now ex husband at 18 and we were together for 18 years and my boyfriend of over 1year recently broke up with me.
Regret is a bitter pill to swallow and harder the older we get.
I pray we all get the doubt out of hearts and the hope back in.
“We will find our heart’s confidence in Christ as we learn how to rely on the power of His promises in our everyday lives.
I continue to work on relying on God’s word all day. It all seems so right and easy in the morning as I complete my daily devotions. Then I reach then end of the day and realize how littleI went back to God’s word throughout the day. I believe this is the key to my confident heart. Let the journey begin!
Hi Sasha,
That sounds just like me. I awake early in the morning to be with Him and am blessed with peace and happiness. Then my day starts…busyness, difficult family situations and noticing my own weaknesses causes my insecurity to grow.
This insecurity is going to stop because I can see how much it is robbing me of joy, doing good deeds and holding me back.
I agree with you, the key is to return to His words throughout the day and think on them and allow them to create confidence. His words prevent doubts and fears from being planted in our hearts.
“You can only see the shadow because you have turned away from the light. Turn back toward the light.”
I hope you are able to find ways to return to His word throughout the day. Thanks for sharing.
Funny when I signed up for this I knew it was something I could benefit from, then the book came and guess what happened? I heard a voice say “no, this isn’t for you”! But -I am here. I want a confident heart ! I want the Father to mold my heart so the doubt can stop! Doubt in His love for me when I fall short, doubt in trusting the Father in my husbands faithfulness to me, doubting that I am a good mother after being given a second chance to have another child, 20 years after my first. Doubt that I can be the head of my church’s prison ministry after all I did 8 years in there and the Father has indeed equipped me…still I doubt after He has shown me so much. …. I look forward to His transformation in this journey – Thank you
amen!
Glad you’re here, I look forward to this journey with you and am committed to taking it to the end, this is the season in my life to grow and be stretched by God! This is the day of the Lord!
Amen Maggie! It is isn’t it?!
the part of chapter one I related to the most was when she said, “The unknown is too scary. Although you’ve been miserable, at least the misery is familiar where you are now.” and “Doubt keeps us from believing things can get better. Doubt convinces us that it’s not worth the effort”. I truly believe nothing will change for me. I will always be stuck where I am mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. And where I am is so familiar its comforting in a sad and twisted way. Thinking about changing is scary, I get discouraged, and feel alone and ashamed I feel this way. I understood where Renee was coming from when she started doubting herself. I know deep down there is this amazing I am meant to be. I just wished I could see her the way others did.
I know the feeling, i’m just about done with my Bachelor’s degree. I had been doing the same job for over 8 years, in the same place. With graduation nearing, i thought it was time to get our of my comfort zone. Even though i felt miserable at my job, it was what i knew.
I just started a new job 2 weeks ago, i believe that God started working on me leaving, pushing me out of my comfort zone..
I understand how you feel, we have to have faith and go out there
The first thing that spoke to me was the fact Renee has pointed out the shadow of doubt is a distorted figure. It is truly much larger than it should be. We have imagined it to be more powerful than it actually is and a certain force has helped it grow larger than than the real true size of the fear. God allows us to step into His light and the shadow shrinks and disappears.When we walk in the light of His fellowship doubts will disappear and we can have confidence to do anything.God has spoken that perfect love casts out all fear. 1 John 4:18
This study comes at a perfect time, i was looking for a resource to delve into God’s word. With being a mom, working and going to school Full time. I felt guilty spending anymore time outside of the house. I love that i can dig into his word from the comfort of my home and i’m able to spend time with family.
I related with your personal story, i was born to parents with a serious drug addiction. Because of this i was constantly being shuffled from my mom to my grandparents house. I felt so out of place everywhere i went.
While reading that 1st chapter of the book that the thing that spoke to me was Rom 12:2 “the way you think, will determine the way you feel and eventually transform the way you live”
My grandfather was a pastor and i always remember him telling me that we dont go by what we feel. I thought it was such an odd concept but as i’ve gotten older i understand what he was trying to tell me. Feelings can at times be paralyzing.
This is the very first time that I have ever taken part in an online study… And of course, my insecurities told me “This isn’t for you… These women are spiritual women. You are mediocre at best!” Then God spoke to me and said, “this is exactly what you need.” So here I am.
The sentence that really touched my heart was this: “As God’s girls, we need to know and believe that change is possible.” I believe change is possible and I believe this study is my starting point.
I really enjoyed the first chapter, and it really sang out! I was once very trapped in self doubt, stuck in criticism, and it was faith in God, a great husband that brought out the “sunshine” and the fact that we can just NIKE it… just do it! I look forward to the next chapters.
What really resonated with me were the thoughts of “I can’t do this. It’s too hard.” I must say these things to myself a zillion times a day, often from the moment I wake up.
Expecting God to do a ‘New’ thing! Yes, I am so ready to let God’s Word change the way I think, which will determine the way I feel and eventually change the way I live! (pg. 24). I am extremely excited to be part of this study! Thank you Renee for your obedience to God, and allowing Him to use you in such a monumental way!
I realize as I read these comments that I am not alone! Hallelujah! I have felt like God’s promises and blessings were for everyone but me. I’m not important enough, I don’t do enough, why would God notice a loser like me? I don’t even know why I think that way, since I have a pretty darn good life. But I pray that this study helps me realize these negative thoughts are not God’s thoughts. I plan to pray the prayer from chapter one at least twice a day until the next week. I need to engrave God’s promises in my heart so I don’t forget that I am very precious to God (Daniel 10:19).
I love the words and assurance from the prayer: “my confidence is in Christ and I am no longer one who shrinks back and is destroyed, but one who believes and is saved.”
I am going to “dwell in the assurance of Whose I am and who I am in Him”.
Thank you.
“You can only see the shadow because you have turned away from the light.. Turn back to the light ” This speaks to me when doubt, insecurities etc fill me. Which seems to be a lot lately.
Reading this chapter reminded e of two key things my mother said to me when I was a teenager that sort of governed the way I look at myself the rest of my life. The first thing she said was in response to a question ,y older brother posed to her when the three of us were in our kitchen. My mother and I were working on a cake or something like that at the counter next to the stove. Mom was criticizing something I was doing and my brother said ‘mom, do you ever praise Stephanie for anything?”. Mom’s response was ‘when she does something worth praising I am sure I will.” The other time was when I was about 17 and not very slim. She said to me ‘it’s no wonder you don’t have a boyfriend. You don’t have a very pleasing package.” This was mom’s way of encouraging us to fix a flaw. Hurt my feelings but mom did’t care. There was a problem and it had to be worked on.