Confidence, a Necessary Component to Success
2 Chronicles 9:1
"And when the queen of Sheba heard of the fame of Solomon, she came to prove Solomon with hard questions at Jerusalem, with a very great company, and camels that bare spices, and gold in abundance, and precious stones: and when she was come to Solomon, she communed with him of all that was in her heart."
A very important part of Solomon's success was the level of his confidence. One thing that you will notice about Solomon was that he did not lack confidence. After taking over the throne of David, you immediately see that Solomon was very confident with every decision he made. When the Queen of Sheba heard of Solomon's fame, she came to question him to find out if everything she heard was true. To her amazement, she found a very confident individual to the degree that she said, "...the one half of the greatness of thy wisdom was not told me:..." When you look at Solomon's life, you find there were four things that gave him confidence. These four things that gave Solomon confidence are necessary components to your level of confidence. Because these are necessary components to confidence, then they are necessary components to success, because you will never experience great success without confidence.
The first thing you'll notice about Solomon was that he had finished projects to which he could point. It is very important for your confidence that you finish what you start. Every time you quit a project that you start, you lower your level of confidence. You need to succeed at something to have confidence. When you can have something to which you can point that you built or completed, that helps build confidence in your life. One of the greatest reasons many people have no confidence is because they have never finished or built anything. Building and finishing projects will build your confidence level.
The second thing you'll notice about Solomon was that he knew what he believed. When the Queen of Sheba asked him questions, he had the answers. Don't go through life not knowing what you believe. You need to know what you believe about the Bible. You need to know what you believe about the doctrines of the Word of God. You need to know what you believe about politics. You need to know what you believe concerning finances. These are just to name a few subjects, but you need to know what you believe in every area of life. If you don't know the answer in some area, then get the answer by taking the time to learn about that area. Don't let your lack of knowledge be a crutch that you lean on as an excuse not to have an answer.
The third thing you'll notice about Solomon was that he was organized. Organization brings confidence. When someone lacks organization, then their lack of organization brings a lack of confidence. You must make sure your life is organized, because organization brings a calmness, and calmness is an element of confidence. If any part of your life is disorganized, then take the time to organize it so your confidence level can be boosted.
The final thing you'll notice about Solomon was that he had a good attitude. He and his people were happy. Why were they happy? They were happy because they had done right, and doing right gave them confidence. Your attitude plays a big part in your confidence level. If you have a negative attitude, then you will have a hard time having the confidence that you need your life.
Confidence is an important part of anyone's life. Don't go through life with a lack of confidence, but take these four components of Solomon's life and put them into your life. These four components will help you to raise your confidence level.