Serve
Watch
Care
Give
Now

Who Are You Living For?

“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” – Galatians 1:10

Do you find yourself caring about what people think of you?

Perhaps you dress a certain way or act a certain way to earn approval.

Or maybe, like me, you have learned that you can avoid rejection if you remain quiet and distant

“But you, O Lord, are a shield about me, my glory, and the lifter of my head…I lay down and slept; I woke again, for the Lord sustained me. So I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me…” – Psalm 3:3-6

Throughout the Bible, God often separates people into two categories. The first: people who care about His opinion. The second: people who care about peoples’ opinion.

You can probably guess which one He prefers.

David is our shining example of a man who puts God’s opinion above everyone else’s. When he confronts Goliath (1 Samuel 17), his brothers mock him. When he is named the future king (1 Samuel 16), Saul tries to kill him. When he brings the arc of the covenant home (2 Samuel 6), his wife scoffs at him.

Yet David isn’t fazed.

Because more than brothers, more than kings, more than wives, David craves the approval of the Lord.

Whose approval do I crave?

Do I find myself living to please those around me?

Or do I trust in the Lord? Do I seek Him above all else?

“Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” – 2 Corinthians 4:16-18

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith.” – Hebrews 12:1-2

When we are tempted to live to please the world and the people around us, may we not fix our eyes on what is seen but on what is unseen. May we fix our eyes on Jesus. Like David, would the approval of the Lord be our highest desire!

As a final thought, I am reminded of the old hymn “The Heavenly Vision” (also known as “Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus”) and the first line of the chorus:

Turn your eyes upon Jesus
Look full in His wonderful face
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace