It’s Time to Oust Your Self-Doubt and Reclaim the Truth About You

Self-doubt surfaces quickly when it’s thinly veiled behind borrowed confidence and temperamental self-esteem. Maybe this is your story.

To others, you appear secure, but you feel deeply insufficient inside. You can take the lead, finish the work, maintain a high standard of excellence, and pass as having it together. But you can’t outrun the voice that whispers, 

If only they knew how little you know, how long you’ve been in this role, or how lost you feel . . .

If only they knew how un-brave and undeserving you actually are . . .

If only they knew how meticulously you mask the peculiar aspects of your personality . . .

If only they knew the 14-year-old inferiority you never outgrew . . .

I’ve given ground to similar, self-sabotaging thoughts. Spun in circles fueled by incessant overthinking. Second-guessed my way to the safest way forward.

I admit I’ve dismissed myself before anyone else could. Pulled away from friendships, convinced I’m more burden than blessing. Deflected praise because I disbelieve my own worth. 

If you are nodding your head to any of this, there is hope. I wish we could sit down together and remind each other of what’s irrevocably true of us. But maybe the reason we don’t believe it yet is because we’ve skipped a step, so let’s start there.

How to Oust Your Self-Doubt

Truth is, the only way to oust self-doubt is to go deeper. 

How do we do that, you might ask? The same way you get rid of Rose of Sharon.

If you’ve ever seen Rose of Sharon, you might mistake it as a pretty tree covered in delicate flowers. But this is all a guise. Rose of Sharon looks innocent enough, but it’s one of the most invasive plants you could put in your yard. It grows rapidly, sending limbs in multiple directions. Trim the lower branches and you might end up with a 10-12-foot tree.

And lots of baby trees that grow like weeds and have roots that don’t let go without a fight. Especially when it takes you a while to catch on to what’s happening.

The key to getting rid of Rose of Sharon is to eradicate the roots. Every last bit of root. Even a little left in the ground can magically (read: tragically) result in a brand-new growth.

Let’s boil it down to three simple steps. 

1–Water the roots.

Your best chance to pull up a young Rose of Sharon by the roots is to have the ground soggy wet with fresh rain. There is much less tugging and less chance of the roots breaking when the dirt is soft. 

The same principle applies to our lives. In order to unroot self-doubt, we first soften the soil of our hearts. There are many ways to tenderize your heart, but I personally find it helpful to adopt a physical posture of surrender, like kneeling. A guided journal that encourages you to get honest with God is another great way to get through the crusty layers of self-denial and shame. My favorites are Stuff I’d Only Tell God, by Jennier Dukes Lee and Sacred Prayers by Ann Voskamp.

I also love a good, soaking worship song, especially when left on repeat. Many, many times, Spirit-inspired, truth-saturated lyrics have prompted me to give God access to my heart. (You can find a playlist of these songs HERE.)

2–Remove the roots. 

The younger the Rose of Sharon, the easier it is to remove the roots. There’s an applicable lesson here. When it comes to lies stemming from your self-doubt, diligence pays off. Stay attuned to what’s growing in your heart so you can address invasive roots before they take over. 

Root removal is mostly an act of surrender. It’s not us fixing our lives, but giving God the access He needs to get to the bottom of what’s keeping us in bondage. It’s letting go of what God wants to tug out. Trusting that His way is far better than temporary reprieve.

If surly lies stemming from self-doubt are the equivalent of well-established shrubs or full-grown trees, they will need the main root system dug out. This is tender heart surgery you don’t perform on yourself. Your job is to trust the Master Surgeon, Christ Himself, who works with precision and patience.

A soft heart responds more readily to God, so don’t rush the time you need for your heart to grow tender, whether the lies about your worth appear insignificant or enormous. Chances are–as with Rose of Sharon–if there are small ones in sight, there’s also one larger nearby. 

3–Watch the soil.

When ridding your yard of Rose of Sharon, you prep (by watering the roots), pull the roots out of the ground, and then stay proactive by removing seedlings as they appear.

My family relocated to Lexington before we conquered Rose of Sharon, but I hear you’ve got to keep watch for several seasons. Similarly, Christ-followers are urged to stay alert against the wiles of our enemy (1 Peter 5:8).

In my backyard, years back, I noticed that the same rain that made the roots easier to remove also caused new seedlings to shoot up. Right after a rain was the best time to scour the yard and pull every last one. 

Cultivating a tender heart does not mean self-doubting lies will never grow. Jesus doesn’t promise a life without struggle. Instead, He says He will be with us through the upheaval (Isaiah 43:2). But the sincere trust that grows in an ever softening, surrendered heart makes the removal of unwanted roots easier. 

The Truth About You

Let’s circle back to that irrevocable truth about you. Like me, you may have memorized this Bible verse before, but invasive lies have overcrowded your mind. As you give God unbarred access to your heart, plant this in your mind:

My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.

2 Corinthians 12:9 NKJV

Those lines about your insufficiency are garbage. You are covered in generous grace and your imperfections can showcase the perfection of God all the better. You don’t need to get your life together on your own, only to invite God into your backyard where all the invasive things like to grow.

Let’s pray.

Lord, make us tender. Soften our hearts. Help us to surrender. 

Would you remove the lies about our worth that are growing like an invasive Rose of Sharon? We trust You.

Teach us to stay alert to the condition of our hearts so we can discern where a pretty, flowering tree might be a lie in disguise.

Firmly root us in the truth that Your grace is all we need.

In the name of Jesus, we pray. Amen and amen.

Just a friend over here in your corner,

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What if you gave your faith the chance to ripple right into your neighborhood? These quick tips provide a wide variety of baby steps to help you begin to build friendships with your neighbors. When we get close to God and let others get close to us, the things God is working out in us can show.

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