Nevertheless, even among the rulers many believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they did not confess Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men more than the praise of God. Then Jesus cried out and said, “He who believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees Him who sent Me.
Memory Verse: For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. Galatians 1:10.
What’s the first thing that comes to mind you are assigned a task? Ideally, you’ll want to understand the requirements. What is really wanted and what’s the purpose of this task? As part of that process, you want to ensure every step you take is towards working on that assignment. Do you ever go to a more junior colleague to get authorization for the task? or what good is it when the junior colleague has no real authority? If you cannot do that with the junior colleague, why do it with God?
Many times, we miss it because we fail to realize that the final approval lays with us. We get the instruction then spend time going round in circles trying to get approval from people who we think may make the task easier. I have made this mistake so many times myself because I want to play safe, so what I generally do is begin to do my analysis based on what people think. Once I get an instruction which I know is definitely bigger than my skillset, experience, and knowing I could never achieve it on my own, I go out looking for approval of people who may back me up. Most time I have failed terribly because I started God’s assignment with the hope of being sorted out by man.
Jesus taught so much on approval during His time on earth and because He was human, He understood the human nature hence He condemned the Pharisees because they sought attention and glory that came from men rather than God, John 12:43.
The approval you seek from men will limit the extent of God’s glory in your life. People who know your strengths and weaknesses will point out saying this new task by God cannot be delivered by someone with your weakness. In this, you allow men dictate the direction of your life. God however wants to use those weaknesses to shut down those who count themselves as wise. He sees you don’t have what it takes but yet, wants to use His strength to power your weakness.
There is nothing wrong in seeking counsel as the bible tells us in Proverbs 15:22 “Without counsel, plans go awry, But in the multitude of counsellors they are established.” However, we must be careful whose approval we seek. We are follower of Christ, and His approval is the most important for us.
PRAYERS:
- Father, I acknowledge you are greater than the greatest
- I thank you for fighting my battles for me and approving me for greater works
- Forgive my sins Lord and help me to live a purpose driven life
- Help me not fail but succeed and bring glory to you Lord
- Give me all the confidence, strength and ability needed to fulfill your purpose for me
- Thank You Lord for answers to my prayers, IJMN I pray, Amen.
