Psalm 139:14 -15
14 I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. 15 My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth..."
Who do you think you are? By nature, we are all created by God to have a longing for companionship and acceptance. We show or reveal that longing through our desire to be accepted by our friends. Everyone wants to belong—to fit in!
Author Robert S. McGee “The Search for Significance”
“To meet these compelling needs, we are driven to succeed, we do virtually anything to make people happy with us, and we spend countless hours and money trying to look-Just right.
Our hunger to be loved causes us to seek out friends. Our desire for acceptance pressures us to perform for the praise of others. We strive for success, driving our minds and bodies harder and farther, hoping that because of our sweat and sacrifice, others will appreciate us more. "
We are living in the world filled with demanding people, demanding that we should please them in exchange to their approval and acceptance, and since we believed that false belief that;
“I must be approved by certain others to feel good about myself”.
or
Self-Worth = Performance + Opinions of Others
The Problem
1. We are deceived with the performance trap that causes us to bow to our friends pressures to gain approval.
2. We join clubs and organizations and activities hoping to find a place of acceptance for ourselves.
3. We identify ourselves with social groups, believing that being with others like ourselves will assure our acceptance and their approval.
4. Motivated by our fear of rejection we allow Satan's lies to determine the basis of our self-worth.
5. If we reject his lies and value Christ's love and acceptance above all else, then we won't be dominated by the standards of others.
Jeremiah 31:3
3"I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you
with loving-kindness.
6. The bottom of this lie is the fear of rejection, for this reason we want to be involved in a superficial way.
Romans 12:2 Philips Translation
"Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its own mold but let God remold your minds from within, so that you may prove in practice that the plan of God for you is good, meets all His demands, and moves toward the goal of true maturity"
Living according to the false belief, that “you must be approved by certain others to feel good about myself," causes us to continually fear rejection, conforming virtually all of our attitudes and actions to the expectations of others.
GOD'S ANSWER TO YOUR FEAR
1. Your significance comes from God.
2. God cares for you.
3. God has a plan for your life.
4. You have purpose in God original designed.
5. Our fear of rejection exists only because we base our self-worth on the opinions of others rather than our relationship with God.
6. Our dependence on others for value brings bondage, while abiding in the truths of Christ's love and acceptance brings freedom and joy.
“Therefore, the only way we can overcome the fear of rejection is to value the constant approval of God over the conditional approval of people. God's love and acceptance is the source of great freedom, joy, and positive motivation.”
Life Group Discussion
1. What do you find yourself clinging to desperately to give you significance? Is it?
· Physical appearance or weight?
· A need to be approved of or “liked” on Facebook, social media?
· A need to have everything “put together”? To be seen as the one who has it all under control?
2. What do you thinks that you need to change—if needed — to make your security in Christ and not to others opinion?
Prayer Request
1. Pray for our Sunday Worship Experience, that people will truly experience the grace of God as they come and open their heart to the Lord Jesus.
2. Pray for our Attendance and Giving, that people will know that what we do is God’s work as God bless and provide for our ministries.
3. Pray for this coming Sunday’s message and Mother’s day special.
No comments:
Post a Comment