2 Timothy chapter 2 verse 15 (NIV)
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
How many people these days seem to have a need for the approval of others, or to know that they are liked or well thought of?
We are all different, with characteristics and behaviour that some people will like or approve of, and there will be others that don’t. We’re all only human after all.
Here Paul reminds Timothy that the only approval he should be seeking is God’s. He is working for God, and therefore has no need to be ashamed if he is following the path that God has set out for him.
That’s advice that we too would be wise to remember if we are tempted to look for the approval of others. It’s God’s approval that counts above anyone else’s. In a way it takes the pressure off a wee bit, doesn’t it? Especially for young Christians I think.
Dear Lord,
Help me to conduct myself as a good workman in your service, concerning myself with pleasing You before any one else, even if I feel like I am swimming against the tide of popular opinion. I ask in Jesus ‘ Name. Amen.