November 13, 2012 ~ Who're you going to please?

Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God?

Or am I trying to please people?

If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ. Galatians 1:10

Thoughts~ When I was a child I loved pleasing my parents. To get a little pat on the back, a hug for a job well done or even a big smile on their faces brought me such joy! With children of my own, I saw them duplicate my own desires as they wanted to please me. And there is absolutely nothing wrong with that. One of my biggest delights as a mother of young children was having them give me hand drawn cards, flowers from my own garden and even sticky candy from their pockets. Now my grandson Michael likes to hand me half chewed fruit loops to share his love with me and to please me. Yum.

The problem comes when we care more about pleasing others more than pleasing God. We will never fully please any human being because, after all, we are human and not perfect. Plus, humans don’t have our best interests like God does. Humans might be pleased by ungodly activity.

We should be asking God what brings Him the most pleasure in the way we live. As a servant of Jesus, we should be ready to go where He leads and do what He wants. Pleasing God requires our own will being turned over to Him: Obedience to His word, telling others about His Son and putting Him first in our lives. And loving others like He loves, in the best possible way we can.

Action~ Think about who you are trying to please the most. A boss? Spouse? Friend? Parent? When you examine your heart and find that it is anyone other than the Lord, it’s time for a shift change. 

In His wisdom, God knows that as we strive to please Him, our joy will overflow when we sense His smile. When we sense Him saying “well done!” Pleasing God has benefits: sweet forever fellowship with the Lord who loves us. 

Ask yourself: who do you want to please most.

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Prayer~ Lord, I simply want to please You.  I know as I live my life for You, everything else will fall into place. Please show me how to please You every day, every hour, every moment.

As always, I’m Trusting in the Lord,

Becky