TargetPoint Volume 14 of 32
Todays Verse/Thought: Are You a Man-Pleaser or a God-Pleaser?
Proverbs 29:25 Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but to trust the Lord means safety.
Life Implication:
When we govern our lives according to how we are perceived by others, IT'S AS THOUGH WE HAVE CHAINS ATTACHED TO US from the minds of other people to our own actions. Fear of man, whether it is what man can do FOR you, or what man can do TO you, becomes a prison within which we often try to function. In today's verse, the word trap means a snare, a hook or a noose, pretty graphic wouldn't you say?
We see it clearly in the political world of soft-money and leaders falling prey to self-interests. We see it daily in those who compromise their values in order to climb the corporate ladder.
A MAN-PLEASER OPERATES OUT OF FEAR. A GOD-PLEASER OPERATES OUT OF TRUST. What is trust? It's total dependence upon whatever it is we put our trust in. In the book of John in the Bible, we meet a man named Nicodemus. He was a main-man in the Jewish upper echelon of leaders. But this Man called Jesus, piqued his curiosity. Nicodemus, out of fear of compromising his position, CAME TO JESUS AT NIGHTTIME. The next time we see Nicodemus is a few chapters later when he's with the Jewish council, and he timidly speaks up amongst the naysayers, asking, shouldn't there be a trial before someone is condemned? But, the last time we see Nicodemus, he has gone from being a Man-Pleaser to a God-Pleaser, with his total love and devotion and trust, showing in broad daylight. For, he, throwing all caution to the wind, was one who wrapped Jesus' body for burial. Something significant happened in Nicodemus' heart between John chapter 3 and John chapter 19, total faith and total trust, he had discovered Perfect Love, and FEAR AND LOVE CANNOT CO-EXIST. Nicodemus was free!
Life Application:
LET'S CUT THOSE PUPPET-STRINGS of others' thoughts governing our actions. As you go before the Lord, ask Him to cut those connections to your heart and mind. Ask Him to free you to LOOK FULLY INTO HIS FACE AND TRUST HIM for your every move, for your every thought and idea, for your every decision and choice. Look at the ways you operate, the things you do, and BE BRUTALLY HONEST in identifying the Man-Pleaser traits you might have. ASK GOD TO CHANGE YOUR DNA from a Man-Pleaser to total trust in Him.
Tomorrow In TargetPoint:
Giants and Grasshoppers