Make Pleasing God our First Priority

Obviously, I'm not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ's servant.
-Galatians 1:10

The ceremony dedicating the Gettysburg National Cemetery took place on November 19, 1863. It featured famous orator Edward Everett. His two-hour speech covered various topics. Then President Lincoln spoke for two minutes. Major newspapers applauded Everett's address and ignored or criticized Lincoln's remarks. Fifty years later, the chancellor of Oxford University declared Lincoln's Gettysburg Address "a pure well of English undefiled."

We all know how fickle human opinion is. Yet we struggle with a desire to gain approval from others. As believers, our responsibility is to do what pleases our heavenly Father, not what pleases those around us. Seeking popularity can become a form of idolatry, if that's what we base our behavior on. When we make pleasing God our first priority, we demonstrate our trust in Him.

-From The One Year On This Day by Dianne Neal Matthews; November 19

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