Do I Seek to Please God or People?
“For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10 (ESV)
Before we were in Christ, we sought the approval of people and wanted to please others. Here, the Apostle Paul is reminding us that if we are still on that road, we’re not true servants of Christ.
But I want to please God, and I want my heavenly Father’s approval above all. He’s the only One that matters in this life…and the next.
So let’s look at how to please God.
Before we were in Christ, we sought the approval of people and wanted to please others. But Galatians reminds us to seek to please God. Share on XP – Praise the one true living God: Please God
God inhabits the praise of His people (Psalm 22:3). So we not only praise Him but we also celebrate how God inhabits our praise.
Because it not only encourages us to want to enter His presence with praise and thanksgiving, but it also grows our faith.
“Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name!” Psalm 100:4 (ESV)
L – Live for an audience of One
Once we turn to Jesus as Savior and Lord, to please God and desire His approval becomes our life focus—our new life passion. And pleasing people and winning approval from others is not as important as it once was.
E – Exalt the name of Jesus: Please God
We remember the cross and the sacrifice Jesus made for us.
“And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:8-11 (ESV)
A – Abide in Jesus
Abide in Jesus as the vine for a fruitful life.
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 (ESV)
When we abide, we stay connected, we grow.
S – Seek God’s heart: Please God
When we passionately seek God, it radically transforms us. And the enemy knows it. So he uses the world’s distractions to keep us from God. And he uses the desire to please people and win their approval to keep us from seeking God.
What does it look like to really seek after God and His heart? Here are some scriptures to help us put it into perspective.
“The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God.” Psalm 14:2 (ESV)
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6 (NIV)
“And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” Hebrews 11:6 (NIV) Share on X“One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” Psalm 27:4 (NIV)
E – Embrace your identity as a child of God
Often, we separate who we are with whose we are. But the two were always meant to be one and the same.
When I came to know Christ as Lord and Savior at sixteen, I began a new life in Christ as a child of the heavenly Father. And God, the Father, not only wants us to rest in who we are in Him, but to also find our security in whose we are, we belong to Him.
Because when we believe and know: I am loved. I am chosen. And I am redeemed. Then we embrace our identity as God’s child. We want to please our Father and seek His approval.
When we believe and know: I am loved. I am chosen. And I am redeemed. Then we embrace our identity as God’s child. We want to please our Father and seek His approval. Share on X
Featured images courtesy of Friday’s Forever on YouTube.
Last week’s post, 4 Ways God Mends Our Heart After Sadness.
Sometimes I participate in these link-ups: Let’s Have Coffee/Embracing the Unexpected (Grace & Truth).
© 2025 by Karen Friday, All rights reserved
When we seek to make God the focus of our life, that’s when everything else falls into place. Pleasing people is NOT why we were created; we were created to please and serve our loving Father. Blessings, Karen, and thanks again for your beautiful prayer for Danny and me!
So true, Martha, we were created to seek to please God and His approval. I’ve been praying for Danny throughout the day today and you! God bless!
Amen. I want to please God, not myself or others. Have a blessed weekend! 🙂
“and not myself” thanks for this reminder, Melissa. Sometimes the others can be ourselves. God bless.
When we believe and know who we are in and through Christ, then we live to please the One who made us. Earlier this morning I read Ephesians 6:10, such a familiar and oft quoted verse. But this morning it caused me to ask myself a question> If I truly believe this verse, then am I walking in, and living out, those good works? This post will be thought on today!
Wonderful point, Joanne. May we live to please the One who made us. God bless!
I have struggled with the desire to please man. When I know my greatest desire should be to please God. Thank you for the important reminder. As we look to the cross, may we strive to please Jesus above all. God bless!
I’m right there with you, Melissa. Looking to the cross is key for me to keep my focus on pleasing God and Him alone. God bless!
I so appreciate this post! This reminds me of a verse, “Fear of man can prove to be a snare, but whoever trusts in the Lord is kept safe.” -Proverbs 29:25
That is a great scripture reminder that goes so well along with Galatians 1:10. Yes! “Lord, help us to seek to please You and Your approval over anyone else.”
A beautifully worded reminder! I can spend so much thought, time and energy concerned about pleasing others, but ultimately all that matters is whether my life pleased my heavenly Father and brought glory to Him. “Lord, have mercy when I fail to remember this truth and empower me to live to please You alone.”
Beautifully said, Susan. And I’ve been at that place before where I wanted to please people and I wanted others to like me…but at what cost? I memorized Galatians 1:10 years ago to hide God’s Word in my heart so I would’t send against God in this way. God bless!
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This is such a powerful and timely message. I’ve struggled with seeking people’s approval for years, so much that I even did a blog series called *Recognition* about it.
Focusing on pleasing God, not people, is freeing and transforms everything, our decisions, our hearts, and our identity.
Praying that we all continue to seek His heart, abide in Jesus, and rest in the truth that we are loved, chosen, and redeemed. 🙏
Great thoughts, William. I like how you noted that pleasing God is freeing and transforms everything about our lives. And it’s always for our good and His glory. Thanks for your comment. God bless!
“I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:5 (ESV)
I wish I could see I always sought to please God more than please people but that’s not always true. Thanks for the practical ways to do better with this part of my life. I’m working on it. Thanks Karen.
Yvonne, we’re all a work in progress when it comes to any of the aspects of the Christian life we want to grow in. God bless.
Great reflection, Karen! Many of us are too caught up in worrying about other people’s opinions and far too unconcerned about God’s opinion when it should be the other way around. I was that way for years and have finally seen the light, praise God.
Me too, Jessica. Now, I try to remember it’s about an audience of One. God Almighty! God bless!
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