Should you then seek great things for yourself? Seek them not. (Jeremiah 45:5)
Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ. (Galatians 1:10)
It is so very easy to fall prey to the temptation to seek the approval of those around us. After all, none of us want to be rejected by others. We like to think that EVERYBODY likes us! But what is truly important is that God approves of us!
Consider praying the following prayer that is found in Kenneth Boa's excellent devotional guide, Passionate Living: Wisdom and Truth, A Devotional
Lord God,
I thank You that You have given me acceptability and worth in Christ. Teach me to enjoy the opportunities You have given me rather than cramming my schedule in a quest to merit the acceptance of others. May I be concerned about pleasing You rather than impressing people.
Amen
Thanks for stopping by . . .
pj
2 comments:
Greetings Pastor John - from a student in your just completed OT History class at LBC, (an American Idol winner) Dave Cook. I have enjoyed reading your blogs over the past two weeks, particulary your reflections on your daughter's wedding. Your blog on "Where's the Beef" especially resonated with me. Not long into our first class, I realized we were kindred spirits in that regard. Although, I have only been a follower of Christ for four and a half years, I am pained by the lack of sound bible teaching in our churches today. When I consider the state of the contemporary church, I am reminded of God's warning to Israel which He spoke through the prophet Amos - "The days are coming declares the Sovereign Lord, when I will send a famine through the land - not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the words of the Lord. Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it" (Amos 8:11-12). I pray that God will raise up men, like yourself, to faithfully proclaim His Word and end the famine in this country. And I pray that He will consider me worthy to be one of those men. On a lighter note, I just wanted to say how much I enjoyed your OT History class. I never thought I could have so much fun while at the same time dramatially increasing my knowledge of OT History. I hope to have the priviledge of once again being a student in your classroom. Yours truly, David Cook
Thanks David, for your kind and encouraging words. Stay in pursuit of God and His Word -- and God will use you in a great way!
Blessings!
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