Devotions from Judy’s heart

Whose approval matters most in our lives?  Do we care more about what others think than what God thinks? I read some quotes from actor Denzel Washington, who said, “You don’t have to be approved by man if you are approved by God.”  It’s what God thinks of us that is important and not what we have or what others think of us: not even the awards we may have received or titles we have been given. Denzel’s mom told him that “Man give awards but God gives the reward.” Some of the people in the Bible were successes in God’s eye but not necessarily in the eyes of others around them. Think of poor Jeremiah. He was so faithful to do what God asked of him, preaching a message that others did not want to hear or respond to, and yet he was faithful in God’s sight. Whose approval do we seek when we begin each day? Are we diligent to want to know what God has on His agenda for us, or are we more concerned with how we will look before others? The Pharisees loved the approval of men and liked to parade around being seen in the best light. But often what God asks of us, may not be seen by others or approved by them. Our eyes are to be on the Lord and do our best for Him. Paul says in Rom. 14:7-8 (The Message), “It’s God we are answerable to-all the way from life to death and everything in between— each other. That’s why Jesus lived and died and then lived again: so that He cold be our Master across the entire range of life and death, and free us from the petty tyrannies of each other.”  When it doesn’t matter to us what others think, but only what God thinks, we will be carefree in His love and find true freedom. May we do our best to be approved by God, for one day God will examine what kind of lives we lived.  May He say, “Well done!”

Challenge for today: Seek to listen to the Lord to know what His desire is for you.