Creflo A. Dollar - Walking in the Confidence of God in Troubled Times

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

Scripture quotations marked (NIV) are taken from The Holy Bible: New International VersionNIV. Copyright 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (AMP) are taken from The Amplified Bible.Old Testament copyright 1965, 1987 by the Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan. New Testament copyright 1958, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation, La Habra, California. Used by permission.

Warner Books Edition

Copyright 2000, 2004, 2006 by Dr. Creflo A. Dollar

Creflo Dollar Ministries

2500 Burdette Road

College Park, GA 30349

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Warner Faith

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First eBook Edition: April 2009

ISBN: 978-0-446-55957-7

Books by Dr. Creflo A. Dollar

In the Presence of God

Live Without Fear

Not Guilty

Love, Live, and Enjoy Life

Breaking Out of Trouble

Walking in the Confidence of God in Troubled Times

The Missing Ingredient

D O YOU GET results every time you pray? Are you experiencing the full manifestation of Gods promises of healing, provision and deliverance in your daily life?

For most believers, the answer to these questions is a frustrated no. In fact, for too many, prayer is more like a roll of the dice than an exercise in faith. Other times it may seem like the show Lets Make a Deal!, in which Christians try to bargain with God in an attempt to get Him to move on their behalf. Still other believers resort to asking for signs (omens, proof or hard evidence) in an attempt to gain some assurance that God will meet their needs before they fully believe the Word of God.

You probably recognize yourself in one of the above examples. I think weve all been there at one time or another in our lives. I dont need to tell you that all of the straining and striving to get God to move on your behalf can be a disheartening experience. However, Ive got news for you. Not only does that kind of prayer not work very well, its totally unnecessary!

God never intended for His children to beg, plead or bargain for His promises to be fulfilled in their lives. His earnest desire is that you experience abundant lifethe full manifestation of every promise in His Word. That means total provision, prosperity, absolute health, well-being and deliverance from all oppression.

So why arent most Christians, despite all of their confessing and believing, experiencing that kind of life? Why do we still bombard heaven with roll the dice prayers and lets make a deal petitions? The answer is profoundly simple. Each of the aforementioned methods of prayer has a common missing element. They lack the one key component that will energize your faith and revolutionize your prayer life. That missing ingredient is confidence.

What Is Confidence?

Confidence means, assurance; complete and total persuasion. It also closely parallels the meaning of trust. When you trust something, you have confidence in it. For example, when it rains, I open my umbrella, confident in the fact that it will shield me from the rain. There is no doubt in my mind that that umbrella will keep me dry; I trust its ability to do that. Confidence is the quality which enables you to endure and overcome adversity. It causes you to undertake a difficult task with diligence. Youll never take a firm stand for something without first having confidence.

Another term closely identified with confidence is boldness. In fact, boldness can often be used interchangeably with confidence when talking about spiritual principles. Thats because, in Scripture, both words are derived from the same Greek root word. Dont get the wrong idea, however. Many of us have a distorted concept of what boldness is. We tend to think it means seeing how loud you can talk or how belligerent you can be. Thats not boldnessthats your flesh.

Finally, boldness is intricately tied to the concepts of yieldedness and obedience. There can be no true obedience where there is no confidence. Nor can you yield yourself to someone whom you dont trust. Your confidence is the ingredient that makes your faith work. It might be the missing piece to your faith puzzle.

Study Questions

1. What is Gods earnest desire for your life?
2. Why does it matter whether we pray with confidence or not?
3. What can you do today to build the kind of confidence that will energize your faith and revolutionize your prayer life?

My prayer in the confidence of Gods Word...

The Power of Confidence

P EOPLE HAVE SAID to me, Brother Dollar, I know I have faith, yet my faith doesnt seem to be producing anything. This is a complaint Ive heard too many times to count. If you can identify with that statement, take comfort in knowing that theres probably nothing wrong with your faith. You may simply be lacking the vital ingredient of confidence.

Confidence is the force that launches your faith. It propels faith forward just like rocket boosters send a space shuttle into orbit. Trying to operate your faith without the force of confidence is like trying to take off in an airplane that has no engines. Theres probably nothing wrong with the overall structural integrity of the plane; its simply missing a crucial element.

Some people might say, Brother Dollar, Ive confessed prosperity scriptures over and over, and my bills still arent getting paid. You can quote scriptures until youre hoarse, but if confidence doesnt rise up and propel your faith, you wont receive the manifestation of your confessions. Speaking words of faith is not enough; even acting on those words is not enough. You must have confidence in those words for them to have the power to change your circumstances; and that comes only through meditating the Word of God until it becomes more real to you than your situation or circumstance. This is called establishing your heart in the Word of God.

Think of it this way: Have you ever seen a mother take her small child to the bus stop and put him on the school bus? It is confidence that allows the mother to put her child on the bus and walk away. Confidence is like a mother. It takes faith by the hand, leads it to a bus stop in your life, and sends it on its way to reach its desired destination. It is the force that energizes and activates your words.

Just because you open your mouth and say something doesnt mean those words are full of confidence. Many Christians make empty confessions thinking that repeatedly saying the same things will get results; it becomes a religious activity with no power behind it.

Only when your heart is established in the Word of God will confidence rise from within you. The difference between speaking empty words and words that are backed by the force of faith will be apparent by the results that you get. For example, imagine that there are two singers standing in front of a crowd. The first singer squeaks out a song in a weak, trembling voice. Then the second singer performs the same song and gives a commanding performance, belting out the song with enthusiasm. What is the difference between the two? One singer sings with confidence, while the other one isnt as convinced of his talent. The confident singer will make an impact on his audience while the other singers listeners will pick up on his timidity.