Promise for Today Favorite - Pleasing

And whatever you do, do it heartily, as to the Lord and not to men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance; for you serve the Lord Christ.

Colossians 3:23-24 NKJV

It's in our nature to want to be recognized for doing well. That being said, there are all sorts of awards and recognitions and raises that go along with doing well as adults. We just need to be very careful about whom we're trying to please. And I think we have to be more careful about what motivates us to do well or to be pleasing. Jesus warns us in Matthew 6:1 to not grandstand with our good deeds.

I remember well the days of,

Mom, look!
Mom, watch me!
Mom, did you see me?
Mom, how's this?

Children love to impress their parents. So, what is our motivation? Is it,

Father, look!
Father, watch me!
Father, did You see me?
Father, how's this?

I'm waiting for The Day - I just want to hear my Father say, Well done!

Prayer:

Father,
           Oftentimes, we work so hard to do life well. Day after day, trying to go the extra mile, many times for those who don't even understand or appreciate the extra time or effort. Father, give us a heart check-up. Shine Your Light of Truth on any area that is motivated by anything other than wanting to please You. Lord, when the time comes, we want to hear You say, Well done! Come on in! In Jesus' Name we pray.

In All Your Ways

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
Proverbs 3:5-6 NKJV

We all like a little recognition now and then for a job well done or for going the extra mile or doing something special. It’s not why we do the things we do, or at least it’s not supposed to be, but have you ever noticed that satan will come in with his little jabs, such as Why do you do that? They’re just taking advantage of you. Or something equally as ugly. Sometimes it’s an errant thought passing through your mind. Sometimes it’s satan trying to imitate God (Numbers 22:28) by using another donkey (two-legged, usually) to talk to you; but it’s all for the same reason – to try to keep us from doing what God has taught us to do…prefer one another in love (Romans 12:10 KJV).

God continues to teach me to acknowledge Him in everything – to recognize His touch in my daily living, both large and small. I’m getting better at it, although I lose sight of it sometimes. It’s all in conditioning myself to look for Him and training my eyes and heart to see. You might think with the world flying at us in breakneck speed from so many different angles, how could we possibly condition ourselves? How do we train our eyes and hearts to see?  It’s quite simple actually. You just have to know what to look for. Don’t roll your eyes…

Think about this. It’s all about the relationship. Think of someone in your life who you really care for. Would you know them anywhere? Do you know their walk? Without seeing them, do you know their voice? If you know someone well enough, you can hear footsteps and know who it is. You can hear a cough and know who’s coughing. 

How about this? Before the world became so infected with being politically correct, luxury cars were quite distinctive. You could spot a Jaguar a mile away. Mercedes, BMWs, Lincolns, Cadillacs. Why, even the lowly Nash Rambler and Corvair couldn’t be confused with anything else, because nothing had their distinctive shape. Or did you ever play 'Slug Bug?' Maybe you called it 'Punch Buggy.' Looking for VW Beetles and smacking whoever was playing with you when you spotted one first and called it? You knew what to look for then, didn’t you? 

James 1 tells us that every good and every perfect gift is from above and comes down from the Father of lights. There is a distinctive mark on those. Some are very easy to see – the raise or promotion at work. The car that does NOT break down. You stay healthy while everyone else is catching something. The IRS actually INCREASES your refund. (Don’t laugh – it happened to me before.)  Some may be a little less obvious. The car DOES break down, but you actually have the money to pay for it to be fixed because of some mandatory overtime or a “surprise” blessing you got in the mail. The tires that are on sale just when you need new tires. The friend of a friend who will come put Freon in your air conditioning unit because they owed your friend a favor and your friend wanted you to receive it. That’s all God’s touch.

Harder ones to immediately recognize might be that accident that did NOT happen when the 2 trucks in front of you almost collided with each other as you were driving 65 mph down the road directly behind them. Or something like losing a job that you love through no fault of your own, but while you’re out of work, you learn how to fully trust God as your source. How about when you’ve given a repeat performance of messing up - yet again­ -  and you don’t even know how God can forgive you, let alone not be mad at you? But the next morning, you get a sweet note from someone who acknowledges the evidence of God’s gift in your life even though they’ve never mentioned it before and you've known them a long time. Can you recognize Him now?  Then give Him the recognition and praise He deserves. Better late than never.

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.

Prayer:

Father,
            Forgive us for all the times we failed to recognize Your acts of love and care. Give us Your understanding, Lord. We want to acknowledge You in all our ways because we need You to direct our every step. In Jesus’ Name we pray. Amen