People pleasing

Ever feel like the decisions you make are a lose-lose situation? That if you spend time doing something, then you are passing up the opportunity to be doing something better? For example, if you are doing your homework, then you are passing up the opportunity to build meaningful relationships with your friends. But if you are hanging out with your friends, then you are passing up the opportunity to get caught up on homework to maintain that 4.0 GPA. But if you do ether of those things, then you are passing up the opportunity to clean your room to make it spic-and-span for your parents. Or you are passing up the opportunity to read that really exciting book. Or you are passing up the opportunity to exercise and keep a healthy figure. Or, or, or... the list could go on and on and on. To cap it all off, all those things seem like they are taking away your opportunity to build a closer relationship with God. All these things pulling and tugging on you for your attention. Meanwhile you are struggling to try and figure out if you are making the right choices. Ever feel that way? Well, that's how I'm feeling right now. All these things I could be doing. Makes me almost feel guilty no matter what I do because I will always be letting someone down. If I'm doing homework to get a good grade and please my professor and classmates, then I'm not doing my bible study lessons to please my youth pastor. And if I am blogging (like I am doing right now), then I am not doing ether of things and am letting both my pastor and my teacher and my classmates down. With all these thoughts bouncing around in my head, I am left feeling like a failure. A failure who isn't doing anything right.

But what is wrong with this picture? Is this the way it should be? No! Then what is wrong? The problem is just that, I'm trying to please people rather than pleasing God. Let me repeat that. I'm trying to please people, rather than pleasing God. Now that's messed up. The truth is, no matter how hard I may try, I will never please everyone. It's impossible. For if I am pleasing one person, then I loose the opportunity to please someone else. Again, because I am blogging, I'm not spending time with friends; I'm not spending time doing homework; and I am not spending time doing my bible study lesson. So by blogging, I have lost the opportunity to please several people. You see, in order to please people, we have to be doing something. People pleasing requires action. But what about God? What does it take to please God? Do I have to do something to please God? Can I only please God by doing religious things like reading my bible, praying, and going to Church? What does the bible say?

"And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him." Hebrews 11:6.

So in order to please God we must have faith. What is faith? Hebrews 11:1 answers that question for us:

"Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see."

So even though we cannot see God, we must believe (hold a statement as true) that God exists. So is that it? If we just believe that God exists we have pleased Him? Not quite. James 2:19 states this:

"You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder."


Even demons believe in God. But do they please Him? No. So what pleases God? James 2:14-18 has this to say:

"What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, 'Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,' but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

But someone will say, 'You have faith; I have deeds.'

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by what I do."

So real faith will produce action. So what is it God wants us to do? Jesus gives us the answer in Matthew 22:37-40:

"Jesus replied: '"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind." This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: "Love your neighbor as yourself." All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.'” 


So we are called to love God above all else, then love our neighbor as ourselves. This love for God will compel us to love our neighbor as ourselves. Jesus says this in John 14:15:


"If you love me, you will obey what I command."

What is Jesus' command? John 15:12:

"My Command is this: Love each other as I have loved you."


So if we love God, we will obey his command. Notice Jesus does not say, "If you obey my command, then you will love me". But rather, "If you love me, [then] you will obey my command". Meaning, we can be doing the right things, but that doesn't mean we love God. For example, lets say a teen's parent asked them to clean their room. If the teen cleans their room, does that mean that they love their parents? Could there not be alternative motives for the teen cleaning their room? It could be out of fear of punishment, hope for a reward, or simply because they do what they are told. But if the teen loved their parents, would they not clean their room willingly and joyfully, and strive to clean well? Would they not, perhaps, even need to be told to clean their room? The same goes with God. If we love Him, truly love Him, then we will obey His commands. If you truly loved God, would you want to slander His name? Would you want to worship another god? Would you want to steel from another person? Would you want to look upon another with lust in your heart? Surely not! If you truly loved the Lord, you would not want to do anything that would jeopardize your relationship with Him. But rather, you would want to draw near to Him. You would want to love Him more. You would want to give your life in service to Him. You would want to do all things for His glory and not your own. You would want to please God before all others. The truth is, when you love the Lord, you will do those things. You will bring glory and honor to Him in all things. When you love the Lord, you will honor Him when doing your homework. When you love the Lord, you will honor Him when spending time in fellowship with your friends. When you love the Lord, you will honor Him when blogging. When you love the Lord, you will honor Him while at work. You will honor Him while exercising. You will honor Him will reading that good book. You will honor Him in all of your activities. You see, when you love the Lord, obeying His commands is not restricting, but freeing! No longer are you bound to the lose-lose situation of people pleasing. But rather in all things you do, you will honor God when you love Him. So it's not all about trying to make all the right choices. But rather, simply seeking to love God more and more and watching as He transforms you into His likeness, becoming more and more like Christ. 

This goes for everyone, including me. I know it won't be easy, but in the end, it will all be worth it. Just remember that when Christ comes back, and we are judged according to what we have done, it will not be our instructor on the throne criticizing us for not doing well enough in school. It will not be our friends criticizing us for not spending enough time with them. It won't even be our pastor criticizing us for not spending enough time doing our bible study. But Jesus will be on the throne asking us how we lived our lives here on earth, and who we lived those days for. No more people pleasing. Instead, I want to live my life loving and pleasing my Savior and Lord, Jesus Christ.  


"So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."  
I Corinthians 10:31

"Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving."
Colossians  3:23-24