The second principle is: Know who you are trying to please. So many of us can fall into the trap of people-pleasing, but Jesus didn’t try to please everybody. He lived to please His Father, God. He said: ‘I seek not to please myself but him who sent me.’ Jesus wasn’t trying to force other people to like Him. He wasn’t trying to earn their approval. The only thing that mattered to Him was God’s approval. And He had that: ‘This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased’ (Matthew 3:17 NIV). When we start trying to please others, rather than focusing on pleasing God, we’ll have issues with three things: Criticism, because we’re overly concerned about what others think of us. Competition, because we’re afraid somebody will get ahead of us. Conflict, because we’re threatened by anyone who disagrees with us. Jesus said, ‘But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well’ (Matthew 6:33 NIV). By focusing on God’s will, we simplify our lives. We’ll always be doing the right thing, the thing that pleases Him, regardless of what anybody else thinks. And the amazing thing is that we don’t have to try and earn our salvation. There isn’t a standard we have to reach in order to be acceptable and pleasing to God. He accepts us just as we are. Eternal life is a gift to us. We don’t have to be good enough to earn it. ‘For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God’ (Ephesians 2:8 NIV). We don’t need to stress about what others think of us, or whether we’re good enough for God. 

What Now?

Throughout today, make a note of any issues you have with criticism, competition, or conflict. At the end of the day, rip up the paper and thank God that His opinion is the only one that matters.