Who Needs Confidence?

Transcendentalism encourages being your own person and not conforming to the world. I agree with this in that we should never strive to be like anyone else or even be jealous of anyone because God has a different plan for each of us. I think that, when we feel we aren't adequate and we begin doubting ourselves and the sovereignty of our Father, we start to wish we weren't in our own circumstances. We look at the lives of others and feel as if the answer to our own struggles lies in being like someone else. Somehow, if we are enough like another person, or people, our lives will look the same and we will get the results we think we want. Sadly, we forget that everyone has struggles and no one has it all together... Being exactly like someone else (a) is not possible, (b) is probably very creepy to the person you're imitating, and (c) diverts our focus from God and His awesome plan for us! Our circumstances can't necessarily be helped, but our character determines our reaction. A person of strong character acts with integrity and humility; someone with a weak character is fearful and prideful. Transcendentalism would like to attribute confidence and strong character to "knowing thyself" and believing in what we are capable of. The truth is, we fail too much to be dependable and shouldn't put our faith in ourselves. The true way to know ourselves and boldly chase after our purpose in life is through confidence in God... or Godfidence!