2 Chronicles 13:1-12 (NASB) says, “1In the eighteenth year of King Jeroboam, Abijah became king over Judah. 2He reigned three years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Micaiah the daughter of Uriel of Gibeah. Now there was war between Abijah and Jeroboam. 3Abijah began the battle with an army of valiant warriors, 400,000 chosen men, while Jeroboam drew up in battle formation against him with 800,000 chosen men who were valiant warriors. 4Then Abijah stood on Mount Zemaraim, which is in the hill country of Ephraim, and said, “Listen to me, Jeroboam and all Israel: 5“Do you not know that the LORD God of Israel gave the rule over Israel forever to David and his sons by a covenant of salt? 6“Yet Jeroboam the son of Nebat, the servant of Solomon the son of David, rose up and rebelled against his master, 7and worthless men gathered about him, scoundrels, who proved too strong for Rehoboam, the son of Solomon, when he was young and timid and could not hold his own against them. 8“So now you intend to resist the kingdom of the LORD through the sons of David, being a great multitude and having with you the golden calves which Jeroboam made for gods for you. 9“Have you not driven out the priests of the LORD, the sons of Aaron and the Levites, and made for yourselves priests like the peoples of other lands? Whoever comes to consecrate himself with a young bull and seven rams, even he may become a priest of what are no gods. 10“But as for us, the LORD is our God, and we have not forsaken Him; and the sons of Aaron are ministering to the LORD as priests, and the Levites attend to their work. 11“Every morning and evening they burn to the LORD burnt offerings and fragrant incense, and the showbread is set on the clean table, and the golden lampstand with its lamps is ready to light every evening; for we keep the charge of the LORD our God, but you have forsaken Him. 12“Now behold, God is with us at our head and His priests with the signal trumpets to sound the alarm against you. O sons of Israel, do not fight against the LORD God of your fathers, for you will not succeed.”

One of the toughest things to bring is a habit and cycle of timidity, which is derived from a spirit of fear. Shyness comes from a lack of confidence in oneself and a fear of what others may think or believe. It will hold people back from walking in consistent victory and obtaining the promises that God has laid up for them. It limits you from ever reaching your full potential in God, but the moment that you break timidity through the power of the Holy Spirit who gives you courage and boldness, you are able to walk in a joy and peace that this world surely cannot comprehend or offer. You are able to operate in a realm that you have never stepped into before, but you must refuse to allow inexperience or immaturity to dictate your faith in the Spirit of God that rests within your bodily temple. You must know your identity in Jesus Christ and live that out every single day.

 

In verse 7 in the above text, the scripture teaches that worthless men proved to be more powerful than Rehoboam because he was too young and timid. He allowed his age and inexperience to dictate his faith and the battle that he was facing, and so many are doing that even in this generation. If we want to be more than conquerors through Jesus Christ, we must break timidity.

 

So, how do we break timidity? We must:

 

(1) Grasp the revelation of who we are in Jesus Christ.

(2) We must have confidence in the abilities God has given us. This is not a matter of becoming prideful, but rather knowing what our calling is and fulfilling it daily.

(3) Pray the Holy Ghost gives us boldness to be obedient in all things.

(4) Change our habits. We must stop doing the things that we are doing solely as a result of timidity.

(5) Surround ourselves with people who instill in us greater knowledge and encouragement so that we can be disciplined to model our lives after Jesus Christ.

 

Once you break free from timidity, you will feel you were saved all over again. Don’t be bound by the spirit. Let Christ’s perfect love cast out fear! (1 John 4:18)