Thomas Umstattd Jr.

The Problem With Power

Power confuses and concerns me. Here is the paradox: It is hard to do good without it. The more power a man attains, the more evil he commits. In politics we often think: “If only we could get more power we could do more good.” But is this the case? Three Stories -> One Questions Can you fix a broken system by taking power from bad men and giving it to good men? Here are three stories...

Spoken Prayer and Our Insecurities (Praying Aloud Part 4)

Praying aloud can be scary particularly in a group setting where others can agree or disagree. Fear in Prayer Praying out loud can hit the root of our insecurities. We fear man. We fear our own pride. But it is as we pray anyway that we begin to find true healing. What better way to find freedom from the fear of man than in prayer to God. Remember, if you have turned from your sins and put your trust...

Why I am no longer proud to be an American.

I once saw a sign that read, “Texas proud.” This got me thinking. Can pride ever be a virtue? Am I proud of our nation? The fact is there are a lot of things about this nation I am not proud of. I don’t like how we have one of the most permissive abortion laws in the world. Even European nations place limitations on second and third term abortions.We are not a perfect nation, we...

Eternal Debate

Since we are on the topic of confidence, here is another post from the archive. The world says, “be self-confident.” Jesus says, “put your confidence in me.” The world says, “you can do anything you put your mind to.” Jesus says, “you can do nothing apart from me and all things through me.” The world says, “look out for number one.” The Word says, “think of others as more important...

5 Reasons Why Enthusiasm is Better than Confidence

As you can see from my last post I am not a big fan of self confidence. So often presenters struggle with fear and so they compensate for their insecurities with self confidence. The Bible has a word for self confidence. The Bible calls it pride. Confidence might make you feel better but it can turn your audience off. Our confidence should be in Jesus Christ alone. I found these not to long ago and...

Don’t Believe in Yourself

I am going to start reposting achieved posts from my old blog on the first of each month. The enemy thinks he can purify pride with Disney films and encouraging posters. Motivational books tell people they need more self-esteem in order to succeed. Many say, “If we only thought higher of ourselves we could accomplish more.” Just “believe in yourself” the cartoons say. Yet, throughout the Bible...