Confidence

I have been meditating upon Psalm 27 for a couple of days. Verse 3 says, "Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident." I have difficulty relating to these words. Perhaps it is because I lack confidence. The writer says that he is confident even if a war breaks out against him. Wow, I find it hard to be confident when one person criticizes me. A negative comment about how we function as a faith community can make me defensive. Worse yet, a bad hair day can be enough to shake my confidence.

But King David is confident and the reason lies in verse eight: "Your face, Lord, I will seek." Seeking God’s face means to seek His favour and to seek His will. To seek what the Lord wants. "Seeking the Lord’s hand" is to ask for what we want. "Seeking the Lord’s face" is to ask for what He wants. Seeking God’s face will give us confidence. If we seek what He wants, how can we fail? And as we seek His face, we can trust that we will "see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living (verse 13)." Perhaps I can have confidence.