When we try to do things for approval…aka…acceptance, praise, ‘likes’… the realness factor is simply not there because our passion or motive is in the wrong place, and instead of drawing people, what we seek is “taken away” or lost. We need to do what we do because it is who we are, not what others want us to be, or even what we want others to believe we are.
Matthew 21:42-43 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the Scriptures: ‘The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone. This is from the Lord, and it is marvelous in our eyes’? Therefore I tell you that the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people who will produce its fruit…
“If you desire the approval of men, God’s anointing cannot fall upon you.” ~John Bevere
This is more than just for preachers, teachers, or evangelists. This is a truth for everyone in every area of life. When we try to do things for approval…aka…acceptance, praise, ‘likes’… the realness factor is simply not there because our passion or motive is in the wrong place, and instead of drawing people, what we seek is “taken away” or lost. We need to do what we do because it is who we are, not what others want us to be, or even what we want others to believe we are.
The ‘anointing’ will be there when what we do comes from our heart, like a fire that burns within in us that we simply can’t put out. Or, in the words of Jeremiah who said, “But if I say, “I will not remember Him Or speak anymore in His name, Then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire shut up in my bones; And I am weary of holding it in, and I cannot endure it.””
Absolutely, we should feel this way about God, but inside each of us this same God has a purpose for us… “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance as our way of life.” (Ephesians 2:10). In doing “our way of life” which means being truly “you”…that’s when folks will say “…this is marvelous in our eyes” or in today’s lingo, “that’s so awesome!” They may not realize that it is “from the Lord” but they will notice the difference, and the ‘anointing’ of truth will make the difference.
Question. What is it that you love to do more than anything? What thing do you always come back to? Though you give this a try, or that a try, this is what you end up doing, talking about, reading about…thinking about? It’s probably the very thing that God “prepared in advance” (since the foundation of the world even) to be your “way of life.”
Share in one word what it is excites you, that gets you going, that you could do or talk about for hours. One word.
Vickie L. Perez: Vitality 