Dear Younger Self,
You are preoccupied what others think about you. You spend way too much time looking through your closet picking out what to wear to gain others’ approval. You stress out about your words and actions, hoping to gain the acceptance of others through them. This is fruitless and selfish behavior.
People think and care a whole lot less about you than you think they do. They aren’t taking notes on what you wear every time you see them. The frown painted upon their face as they look in your direction most likely has nothing to do with you but what is churning in their own minds.
When you base your behavior on being a people-pleaser, you are setting yourself up for failure. People’s tastes and desires are fickle and therefore ever-changing. Often, when you please one person, you are disappointing another.
A much better use of your time, energy, and attention is learning what God wants and seeking to do that. He always has your best interests in mind and is neither selfish nor demanding more of you than you can give. When you draw closer to Him by praying and reading His Word, you start to look more and more like Him, which is the most beautiful look of all.
This post is part of a 31 Day Blogging Challenge entitled Advice to my Younger Self. Please click here to find all the posts in this series. You’ll be glad you did!
This is so good! I wrote a post last week about ascribing intent, which you touch on here as well! It’s something we do so often without even noticing… we make up stories and jump to conclusions and I love your encouragement to not worry about what people think but to focus on what God thinks and wants for us and from us! Great post!
Thank you so much for the encouragement, Karrileea. Why do we jump to so many conclusions? We serve a mighty God who thinks that we’re terrific!