Have you ever noticed how self-help books hardly ever talk about what a "self" actually is which they intend to help? Most self-help books assume an understanding of what a self is, and press forward with their wisdom. But those assumptions of what a self is profoundly shape the nature of the wisdom that can be offered.  Dan Kent argues that almost all self-help wisdom emerges from one of two flawed views of the self, two opposing ditches, and these mutually exclusive ditches are each destructive in their own way. The Ditch of Smallness says that people are fundamentally bad and that humanity's greatest spiritual threat is pride. The Ditch of Bigness says the exact opposite: people are fundamentally good, and shame is our greatest danger. Dan Kent presents a third view, a road between the ditches. He shows how the humility Jesus revealed offers the most accurate and freeing view of the self. Whereas shame and arrogance are dysfunction steroids (making our depression darker, our anxiety tighter, our addictions stickier, and so forth), humility, as Jesus teaches it, counteracts shame and pride, thereby subverting two major psychological forces that thwart us.Once we embrace this new way of seeing ourselves--how Jesus sees us--we begin to relate to ourselves, to others, and to the world around us in a way that allows us to overcome a whole host of vices and self-sabotaging behaviors. Furthermore, whereas the ditches both lead to powerlessness and passivity, humility as Jesus teaches it is empowering, fosters proactivity, and serves as a scaffold for true confidence. "This is a completely new paradigm. I don't think anyone's ever seen anything quite like what Dan is getting at in this book." --Greg Boyd , Senior Pastor at Woodland Hills Church, bestselling author of Myth of a Christian Religion, Cross Vision , and Letters from a Skeptic "As a 4 year professional athlete I can say without hesitation this has been the best book I have read regarding healthy, sustainable self-confidence. I have struggled with the concept of godly confidence and humility regarding identity, spirituality, work and relationships for years now, and had all but given up my quest of searching for the possibility of somehow merging the two seemingly opposing forces of confidence and humility in my day to day life when I finally found this book. I have been a fan of the author's work previous to this book's completion so when he introduced its release I was optimistic. The book exceeded expectations." --Daniel Alexander , professional basketball player in the San Antonio Spurs system. "In this book, Dan Kent takes the reader on a transformative journey into the heart of humility. Filled with powerful analogies, penetrating insights, and Kingdom wisdom, Confident Humility sheds new light upon an ancient Christian virtue. Highly recommended!" --Paul Rhodes Eddy , Professor of Biblical & Theological Studies, Bethel University and Teaching Pastor, Woodland Hills Church Dan Kent was born to a fourteen-year-old mother in the humorless tundra of northern Minnesota. He went to college to figure out if God exists, wrote his first novel at twelve, and has worked in crisis mental health for twenty years. He lives with his wife, Barbara, and is currently editor-in-chief of Reknew.org