The Confident Woman Devotional

The Confident Woman Devotional

January 1

Jesus Came

In the fourth watch [between 3:00—6:00 a.m.] of the night, Jesus came to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified and said, It is a ghost! And they screamed out with fright. But instantly He spoke to them, saying, Take courage! I AM! Stop being afraid!
Matthew 14:25–27

As was true of the twelve disciples, you are full of capabilities, gifts, and talent. God’s enablement of His grace and presence is with you. So what are you doing with your life? Are you like the eleven disciples who stayed in the boat, or are you like Peter, who when Jesus was passing by said, “Lord, I want to walk on the water with You!” Do you have a vision for your life and want to do something greater than what you’re doing? Are you going to just sit in the boat and shake and quake and watch the rest of the world go by, or will you be one of those rare individuals who jump out of the boat and refuse to live afraid?
It’s up to you what you’re going to do with your life. Fear is always going to come against you. But listen to Jesus’ words: “Take courage! I AM! Stop being afraid.” It’s time to step out and do the thing you desire to do.

Lord, I praise You that You come to me and extend Your presence and Your helping hand. As was true of Peter, I want to be a water walker. Amen.

January 2

Had Enough?

And Peter answered Him, Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.
Matthew 14:28

When I tell you to join Peter and get out of the boat, you may wonder what your boat is. Your boat may be a lot of different things. What is your place of comfort, safety, and ease? It could be a place of misery, but yet, somehow or other, you’ve gotten comfortable in your own misery—so comfortable that you wouldn’t do anything about it even if you could. You may have gotten addicted to dysfunction. The sad thing is that the most people yield to the fear and remain stuck in life.
Maybe your boat is somebody whose approval you crave, who rules all of your decisions and your life literally is just tied up in their life. If they approve of it, you do it, and if they don’t like it, you don’t. You may be so addicted to getting your approval from other people that you let everyone else run your life, and you’re too afraid to confront them and stand up to them. Are you going to sit in your miserable little boat for the rest of your life and be unhappy? Or are you ready to say, “I’ve had enough of this! I’d rather get out of here and drown than stay here longer.”

Lord, I need to see You and hear Your voice over and above the storms in my life. Help me to break free of anything that is holding me back from doing Your will. Amen.

Excerpted from The Confident Woman Devotional by Joyce Meyer. Copyright © 2011 by Joyce Meyer. Reprinted with permission of FaithWords, New York, NY. All rights reserved.