Do you approve?

We all want approval.  Whether we are seeking the attention and compliments from our parents when we draw a beautiful picture as a 4 year old (my oldest daughter right now),  hoping for a good grade on a presentation we worked so hard on as a teenager in high school, or are looking to finally get the recognition we deserve at work in the form of a bonus or promotion, everyone wants to feel like they are approved.  We want desperately to fit in with the crowd, but just be slightly better so that we can always get a few compliments.  The last thing in the world we want to be looked at is weird or strange.  We don't want to upset anyone, and we definitely don't want to let people down.  The "we" I'm referring to are those of us who have a tendency to be people pleasers.

As a Christian, people pleasing can be a dangerous thing.  It can lead to us compromising our core beliefs simply because we don't want to "rock the boat".  I remember as a teenager watching so many of my Christian friends fall into that fitting in trap, leading many of them to compromise so many of the things that they believed in.  I hate to break it to anyone, but God is not interested in us fitting in with the crowd.  He has not called us to be followers of anyone but Him.  Now, that doesn't mean we should become a bunch of weirdos and act like a cult, however, it does mean that we should not allow the trends of the day to mold how we act or what we believe.

"Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God.  If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant." Galatians 1:10 NLT

It's one thing to want to fit in when you are 15 years old and awkward, however, we eventually need to grow up.  We have to figure out what we really believe, and realize that sometimes our beliefs may not be popular.  Now, that is not to say we need to sit on our high horses and look down on everyone else in the world in judgement. Jesus was never condemning, but he was also not permissive.  He never veered from what was right, but wasn't afraid to shed light in the darkness.  I know that when it comes to being like Jesus in this aspect, I often struggle.  I remember being somewhat of a holy roller in high school.  I stuck to my convictions, but was definitely on the high horse judgmental end of the spectrum.  I have also found myself on the other end of permissiveness and not wanting to speak up for fear of not fitting in from time to time as well.  

So how do we remedy the two vastly different ends of the spectrum?  I believe that we need to focus on what the Apostle Paul said in Galatians 1:10 (see above) and remember that we are Christ's servant.  That's it!  We need to focus on serving in whatever capacity we are called in, and forgetting about the opinions of others.  We need to quit sitting on that high horse, and instead spend a little more time on our knees praying for the people we used to look down on.  At the same time, we need to stand up a little more, even when we know that we could lose a few friends or not fit in because of it.  Our focus needs to be on being approved by the creator of the entire universe, not some imperfect person that we think is cool.  I pray that even though I may let my parents, friends, and even my husband down from time to time, that I will always keep my focus on pleasing the one who's opinion matters more than all the rest.  I pray that regardless of  my situation and who I am with, I will remember that I am Christ's servant and that I will serve Him well.  And finally, I pray that the church today could learn to serve Christ first no matter what is going on in the society around us.