How much time do we spend thinking about what others think of us?
How much time do we spend wondering what God thinks of us?
I think these are repeat questions that we need to keep asking ourselves.
I'm trying to identify where I am seeking to live up to other people's expectations instead of my own, or even God's expectations.
Trying to live up to expectations of others leaves me so tired.
I cannot please all of the people all of the time. I can't even please some of the people some of the time.
Sometimes I base a decision on my kids being happy with me (or let's be honest, just keeping the peace for a minute), or my husband, or best friend.
Other times I overthink what every person on the planet may misunderstand about me.
Mankind is fickle; God is not.
This makes people hard to please while God’s pleasure in us doesn’t depend on our performance.
He doesn’t change. He loves us constantly.
As a parent, I always love my children, but there are times that I am more proud of them than others. That's the truth, but it doesn't change my love for them.
God is even better at this. His love is completely constant never ebbing and flowing with the tide of emotion. But I think he has moments that He is really proud of us too, like when we choose the right thing under pressure, when we obey without analyzing because we love Him. I know it brings Him joy when we choose to honor Him above other people's opinions. I mean really, if you are a parent, isn't it fantastic when your kids actually take your advice?
So I’m asking myself this question on repeat, how can I please God in this moment?
With this decision?
With my trust?
I know that He’s already smiling at me and loves me perfectly. That makes me want to make His smile bigger.
No only does placing our hope only on God's opinion give Him pleasure, it also keeps us safe:
Fear of man will prove a snare,
but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.
Proverbs 29:25
Fear of man, constant wondering who will be disappointed in me, won't agree, or misunderstand me leaves me completely exhausted and overwhelmed. This is not the head space I can make great decisions from.
The next time you are feeling pressure in a moment or a decision, which will probably be today, ask yourself where its's coming from.
Identify and adjust who you are seeking to please.
Instead of looking around to judge what people are thinking of you, look up and ask what God is thinking about you.
Jesus didn't tailor His actions to the people around Him. He didn't care what they thought of Him. He trusted what His Father said about Him. I feel safe saying that His ministry was crazy effective. If we want to point people to God, we can't chase people's opinions. We have to stand solidly on God's opinions.
Steal this prayer:
God, open my eyes to see my own motivations.
Thank you that you can see clearly into my heart.
Show me where I have an unhealthy bent to please people.
Train my eyes to look up instead of around at others to weigh my decisions.
In Jesus name, Amen.
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