Always
remember Who you’re serving and why you’re here. He’s the One who matters most.
June’s Awakening, Day 14
“Be careful not to practice your
righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have
no reward from your Father in heaven. “So when you give to the needy, do not
announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the
streets, to be honored by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their
reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know
what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. Then your
Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Matthew 6:1–4 NIV
Whatever you do, work at it with all
your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that
you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord
Christ you are serving. Colossians
3:23–24 NIV
We
all desire and need a certain amount of healthy affirmation and encouragement
from our family, friends, and peers. Approval and the accolades of men are nice
perks to affirm and reassure us that we are doing things well. Yet, taken to an
extreme, the constant requirement for positive reinforcement from those we deem
most important can be quite detrimental to our well-being. That is what we call
“approval addiction,” and our own personal validation of other’s opinions
toward us gives their approval or disapproval credibility and we judge
ourselves accordingly. Becoming a spiritually mature Christian means refusing
to allow other people’s opinions about ourselves to dominate or control our
lives.
Secrecy. The spiritual discipline of
secrecy, like simplicity, is first an inward attitude with an outward
expression. We should always receive praise or a poor review gracefully,
cordially, and humbly, but always realizing that in the final analysis it is
not men we are working for nor the praise of men that we are striving for, but
the recognition of the Lord with a “well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew
25:21, 23). The practice of secrecy is the outward expression of that healthy
attitude by serving, giving, or providing assistance to others, as if unto the
Lord and the Lord alone, done without divulging your identity or expecting any
acknowledgement from men in any way. It is precisely what it says—done in
secret. Your Father in heaven sees all and knows all and most assuredly will
reward you for your good deeds, even in the supplying of a cup of water to
those who are least (Matthew 10:42). There is no need to toot your horn—let the
Lord sound His own trumpet for you. This obviously requires a great deal of
healthy confidence, assurance, self-esteem,
and spiritual maturity—it is one of the most difficult of the spiritual
disciplines to master and requires a well-ordered heart.
Here are three danger signs that a
healthy reception of praise or criticism from men has turned into borderline
approval addiction. Comparison—constantly gauging and measuring your
accomplishments against those of others, even though you truly never know all
the circumstances. Since we never know all the details surrounding the apparent
accomplishments of others, it is equally impossible to make any valid
comparison and it becomes an exercise in futility. You are a unique you, God
has a special plan precisely for you, and everything changes with time.
Deception—when our concern for what others think becomes overriding, we will
shade the truth and make excuses for ourselves when we don’t meet their
expectations. Just be honest—if you believe the criticism to be correct, own it
and let it propel yourself to be better. If you believe the criticism to be in
error, acknowledge their observation, hold your tongue, and reject it in your
heart unless the Holy Spirit tells you otherwise. Resentment—when we crave
approval in excess, we inevitably come to resent those whose approval we seek.
We transfer our own frustration onto others and make it their problem and fault.
This is a difficult pit to get out of and is self-destructive. Always
acknowledge, pray about what’s been said or not said, and look to the Lord your
Master for His answers.
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