Pleasing God
Our purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of our hearts. 1 Thessalonians 2:4
A friend told me that the older she gets, the less she worries about pleasing other people. And there is a sense of freedom in not living to be a people pleaser. But as a follower of Jesus, the older I get, the more I feel challenged not to live to please other people or myself, but to live to please God.
Paul, who wrote the above scripture, is a wonderful example of faithfulness in spite of intense opposition. He traveled over a significant portion of the Roman empire, proclaiming the gospel and establishing new churches. And there seems to be no place he went where he did not face opposition. Yet Paul never backed down. He was always faithful, regardless of the personal cost. His motivation for doing so was simple. He wanted to be pleasing to God. How other people reacted to that was not his concern.
We can be inspired by Paul’s example, but not intimidated by it. We are not called by God to do what he did. We are called to faithfully use the abilities, talents, personality, experiences and opportunities God has given us. We are called to share the love of Jesus and His story.
There are many ways we can do that. We can offer to pray with a friend who is struggling or invite someone to church. We can share the link to a sermon that has touched or inspired us. Perhaps we can simply ask God how to share His love and be prepared to act upon His answer.
Lord God, help us to live to please You, sharing our faith without fear or embarrassment. Give us courage and humility as we trust the Holy Spirit to speak through us. May our desire to please You motivate us to loving action. One day may we hear, “Well done good and faithful servant”. Amen