Hi ladies! I apologize for being behind on posting. I am hoping to catch up soon. Today we are going to discuss the Approval of Man. Open your bibles to Galatians 1:10; John 12:43; and Colossians 3:23-24.
We are all guilt of this one. We all seek and hope for others approval, whether it’s our parents, our friends, social media, the church, etc. The only one we aren’t looking for approval is Jesus. Going down this road of looking for approval can be dangerous. We can easily get distracted and actually made an idol of someone’s approval. It can also turn into a sin when we search for the praise that comes from man and not from God. It becomes an idol when we allow it to rule our minds and hearts. When did you desperately crave someone’s approval? Where you looking for God’s approval or man’s? This is when we need to examine our hearts and give it to the Lord.
The road in search of approval from man is long and broken. It becomes an endless cycle of living to please others. Even if we are temperedly satisfied, it will never lead us to a place of hope and fulfillment. If we aren’t searching for God’s approval we will always be searching to satisfy our need. I want you to take a moment and examine your heart. Where does the need of approval come from? When did you recognize your need to please others above the Lord? There is no judgment whatsoever. Lord knows that I am very guilt of this idol. I look to others all the time and I need the reminder that I need God’s approval- not the worlds.
What does turning over our need to please others look like and how do we get there- holding the affirmations of others loosely and hold fast to what God tells you. We do not need others approval as much as we tell ourselves. We just need God’s. When we give over this longing over to the Lord, we are giving over the control, and girl, it feels amazing! When I finally give up my consistent need to please others, I have a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. I struggled (and still do) with this for so long and I got tired of feeling broken. I surrendered it to God. When we place our faith and hope in Jesus as our Savior, we can stand confidently before God.
Let’s discuss what we just read. I have some questions that I want you to think about, write them down, and if you’d like to comment below we can discuss them together!
- How does the approval of man affect the way you live? How are you affected by a lack of approval from others?
- How does the approval of God in Christ compare to the approval of man?
- In what ways have the expectations of approval from others affected your relationships?
- What does it look like to turn from the idol of approval?
God’s approval is not temporary or dependent on our performance and circumstances but is rooted in the finished work of Jesus. I pray this wonderful truth set us free from idolizing the approval of others and stir our hearts in worship of the only One who can offer us true approval.
I hope you enjoy this study and decide to come back. Tomorrow, we’ll learn about busyness and learn how it’s an idol. I hope you enjoy the beautiful sunset that was made by our loving Father and y’all have a wonderful night.