Confidence is a childlike quality. A child places implicit trust in its mother. Children have confidence in themselves and in each other. Their freedom from vanity and self-consciousness, their faith in what they are doing and assurance that it will succeed, their spontaneity of thought and expression, their contagious joy, make their work and their play a delight to themselves and to others. We all know how their simple trust and direct thinking often accomplish beautiful healings. On page 236 of "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures" Mrs. Eddy says: "Jesus loved little children because of their freedom from wrong and their receptiveness of right. While age is halting between two opinions or battling with false beliefs, youth makes easy and rapid strides towards Truth."
It was Elijah who said to the children of Israel: "How long halt ye between two opinions? if the Lord be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him." This admonition has been echoed by prophets and apostles down the ages; but never has it been urged upon a troubled and bewildered world with such insistence as it is to-day. Never have the nations of the earth been so tremendously set upon to choose righteousness and justice in their dealings with each other, to cease putting trust in princes and in the agents of evil, and to place their confidence in divine Principle.
A dictionary definition of confidence is: "Act of confiding, trusting, or putting faith in," which implies choice or volition. Another meaning is, "State of feeling sure;" and still another, "Overboldness; presumption," which reminds us that there is an assurance that should be avoided, because resting on a false claim. To have confidence in aught but good is idolatry. Abraham realized this when he went out from Ur of the Chaldees —that ancient city of astrologers and star worshipers—and turned his steps toward the promised land.
