Have you ever wanted to say something and then didn’t because you were concerned about how it might come off. You wanted to encourage somebody, but thought, “What if that sounds weird?” You wanted to ask for help, but thought, “What if they never look at me the same way again?” Sometimes nobody has even said anything! We imagine their reaction, & it’s enough to stop us. They don’t have to disapprove. Just the possibility does the job. Now, caring how our actions affect people can be a good thing. But when does caring about people turn into protecting our image? Have you ever said, or heard somebody say, “I don’t care what people think!” Well why do we feel the need to make sure people know we don’t care? We even say it about somebody as a compliment: “Man, he don’t even care!” And we think, “I hope people say that about me!” See the irony? How can we be freed from the burden of needing people’s approval… needing to look like we don’t? And what happens when that starts shaping how we respond to God? How do we learn to stop protecting our image before others long enough to humble ourselves before God?
