No Confidence in the Flesh

“Our mantra is Jesus + NOTHING.”

“For we are the circumcision, the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ

Jesus, and do not put confidence in the flesh…” Philippians 3:3

This reminder was written from Paul to the people in Phillpi. Regular people like us, moms

and grandmas who had put their faith in Jesus as their Savior. But slowly the Philippians

had begun to believe the whispers around them, that they could do more. They believed

the whispers that they weren’t quite following Jesus unless they had “this one other thing”,

that one attribute, this one habit. And slowly the lie grew until they believed that without all

the extras, they actually weren’t secure with God at all. They fell into the trap of “Jesus +”

and needed Paul’s reminder in this verse.

And we need the same warning in our lives today. Because, momma, human nature has a

way of keeping us in danger of attempting to save ourselves, and our kids, by our own

accomplishments and achievements. Paul reminds us that the Lord circumcised our hearts

(Romans 2:29) to accomplish what we couldn’t. He did what we physically needed in order

to make us right with God.

We are saved by grace alone. It is done. And now all we are asked to do is abide.

We are asked to stick close to Jesus, walking His way, in the light of His word, resting in His

unshakeable love. His Holy Spirit will do the rest. We don’t need anything additional. As

Jesus followers, we worship by the Spirit of God, boast in Christ Jesus, and do not put

confidence in the flesh. Our mantra is Jesus + NOTHING.

And the same is true for our motherhood. We may feel the weight of our humanness when

we want to be the best mom for our kids, but we won’t accomplish that by Jesus and the

right books, Jesus and the right outfits, Jesus and the right discipline, Jesus and the perfect

attitude, Jesus and our act together. Those are all good gifts from the Father, but the one

“thing” we and our children NEED, is the sacrifice and example of Jesus. He is faithful to

accomplish the work He’s set to do in our hearts (Philippians 1:6).

These kids of ours, no matter the age (I have one about to graduate, and I’m catching on

that there will be no end to the responsibility a mother feels) are good gifts to us, carried by

Jesus, both to delight in and to be refined by. Our best mothering will come from spending

time with Jesus, resting in Jesus, trusting Jesus and His way, loving like Jesus, and growing in Jesus, confessing where we fail and moving forward. Let’s remind each other of this

truth…we are a people of “Jesus + nothing.”

Action Steps:

● Live this out, momma. Stick close to Jesus with confidence that He will do all He says

He will.

● Build this in your children, too. Be purposeful in showing your children how to stick

close to Jesus, building that confidence in them also.

Prayer: Father, we ask that Your Holy Spirit would remind us to come to Him. We ask that

You would calm our hearts and restore our souls as we make time with You. We ask that

You would give us wisdom and understanding in Your word, and the grace to parent out of

that Truth. And may our kids see our example, of leaning on You as our only hope, and live

it out in their own lives. We ask it in the beautiful name of Jesus.

Written by Brooke, confidence-building mom of 3

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